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  • I don’t think RT has a good understanding of the problem nor does it want to be educated about it.

    It seems to me that RT has an agenda of its own, which is to point out European flaws (both real and imaginary) for internal Russian domestic consumption purposes.

    And this is not a unique Russian problem either. It seems that all peripheral countries (aka Eastern Europe) as well as all the Islamistans and Miseristans of this world can’t wait to take a pot shot at Europe and everything European.

    Bottom line: I don’t consider RT to be an honest Broker. More like an ambulance chaser. When one talks to RT he/she needs to be mindful of not inadvertently becoming a tool of their own propaganda machine.

    • I know Dean, and I agree. But I have decided, some time ago, that if I were to limit my appearances only to media outlets that I approve of I would have to remain silent. Indeed, even the BBC can be said to tow its own agenda. However, in this Crisis, it is important to address as many audiences as possible. Where you are absolutely right is in your concern that one may ‘evolve’ into one’s host’s tool. All I can say on this is that I am trying my best not to fall in this trap by actively challenging my hosts. [On a side issue, not all RT programs have the same agenda. ‘Capital Account’ is quite different to, for example, the ‘Keiser Report’.]

    • No, Yani. This was not meant for you, rather your readers.

      You are doing more than a fine job. And there are commentators from RT (like the Californian lady whose name I forget) with whom you have great chemistry.

      So, no; you are a skillful player and therefore immune to injury. I am just saying that there are competing agendas out there and as I have learned many years ago from a gifted socio-economics professor, framing is everything.

      Framing an issue is the whole art and once it has been framed, a great deal of damage can be done pursuing it in the wrong direction. I don’t need to tell you how the Germans have been able to frame the Greek issue under all sorts of misnomers to avoid detection of the real issue.

      As a result, we have practically become German BS detectors,; I don’t have to tell you about it because you live it every day.

    • I’m just reading this website and your comment thank’s to RT. So unless you also want to fit me in some of those boxes, his appearance served it’s purpose.
      It’s obvious that non-profit government funded RT has it’s own agenda. But it’s still a valuable resource of information, not for anti-european audience or even Russians, but especially for Europeans(like me) and Americans.

    • Dean,

      Every show has an angle to it. Our show’s angle is to focus more on the individual, the independent thinker, and yes, the guy/gal who want’s, on balance, less regulation and more competition. We are anti-collectivist. We don’t believe in central planning, in centrally determined interest rates, and we certainly don’t believe that the way out of our current economic problems is for the government to spend more of the money that it doesn’t have. Nor are we for a capitalist utopia.

      This is actually the OPPOSITE of RT’s angle for its news programs, and I would challenge you to find a SINGLE other show on this network that is less agnostic when it comes to matters of nationalism and foreign affairs, and more territorial when it comes to personal freedom. We have a fiercely independent brand to our programing.

      This being said, we also do not discriminate like so many other programs out there, only bringing on guests with whom we agree, and using people with whom we disagree as targets and stooges for malicious attacks. In fact, I take pride in how respectfully we treat our guests and their opinions. We give them the courtesy they deserve, and we give them a platform to express their views that is not combative and distasteful.

      I actually disagree personally with many of Dr. Varoufaki’s views on the economy, and yet I had him first on my radio program (where I gave him the opportunity to discuss, at length, his very intelligent solutions for Europe) after having read through the proposal myself thoroughly, before having him multiple times on Capital Account. If you will notice from watching our show, Lauren is well-prepared for each guest, and I’d say we are one of the few shows where the host actually is familiar with the positions of the guest and has done him/her the courtesy of reading his/her work. We have had a number of guests on our program with whom we don’t agree on a great many things. The common theme, however, is that our guests are anti-establishment to one degree or another. We don’t want people who are scared to challenge conventional wisdom. We want free-thinkers, even if their thoughts and opinions are ones with which we do not agree.

      And, on a personal note, I can assure you that the last thing I want to see is Europe plunge into the abyss. I am still conflicted about whether i would like to see the EZ survive, but that is because I dislike so much of the federalism inherent in the project. That does not mean that I want Europe’s economies or its political system to suffer. In fact, if there is one country that I care for more than any other, it is Greece, but this is an entirely different conversation.

      You should tune into our show next Thursday. Lauren will be in Davos, and I will have a former Federal Reserve Vice Chairman from the Greenspan Fed on. Now what is the angle there? I can assure you that I will not agree with him on just about everything, and I will challenge him accordingly, but the fact that we treat our guests with respect is what allows us to have guests like that on our program. You won’t see that on any other show, I can assure you.

      Demetri

    • And let me just say one more thing. I WISH that every news program or show out there actually took the time to deliver the kind of quality interviews that we strive to do. I can’t image how much better off we would be, if instead of para8yrakia kai tsampouka, we had media that competed on the basis of who produced the best intentioned, most informative and least distasteful shows. Yes, we have an angle, but that’s only because A) its impossible not to have an opinion and B) in today’s world, its REALLY impossible not to have an opinion, because unfortunately, objectivity isn’t what people want. People unfortunately gravitate towards opinion, so the trick is, how do you establish an angle and point of view, but also allow for competing opinions so that people have an opportunity to judge for themselves. It’s true, our opinions do have home-court advantage, but that’s about it, and that’s a small advantage to confine oneself to in this age of mic-cutting, screaming, derogatory propaganda.

  • The interesting aspect of RT, from my POV, is that it has individuals on air, as guests, our normal North American media will not allow on air because the guest’s views don’t fit into an approved standardized political or economic panorama.

    • That’s exactly correct. This is what is so awesome about producing this show on RT. We can speak openly and honestly about what we believe, and in turn, we allow people like Dr. Varoufakis, and others, to come on and openly express their points of view as they see them.

  • The hedge(d) funds are threatening to trigger their CDS contracts. Has anyone questioned the legitimacy of these contracts as a legitimate hedge? Have we already forgotten AIG and its CDS racket?

    The show Capital Account is produced by Demetri Kofinas (www.coveringdelta.com) . . . NOT Vladimir Putin. Sheesh!

    Btw, great gams. (No, not you, Yani — Lauren ;-))

    • Thanks for pointing that out. I’m not for Russian oligarchy. I’m for freedom and democracy, and anyone who watches the show regularly will see that we don’t play the “US/EUROPE bad, China/Russia good” card. We focus on Europe and the US because those are the areas that matter most to the people who work on this show.