What I saw in

Behind the scenes

in the temple of

mainstream media

Artwork by:Flaviano Armentaro

Script/Photo by:Carlo Gubitosa

NO PHOTO!why?

but...

security!

next!

To taste a bit of top-level journalism I sneak into Cnn Headquarters in Atlanta for a guided tour...

Press Freedom?

thanks to my superpowers, i can take pictures against the rules.

The hardest part is not wall-crawling, but taking random shoots without seeing where camera is pointing.

independence from advertising?

While people is still being searched at the entrance, the others are left to see annoying ads.

But When presidentAhmadinejad appears on screen, everybody runs away.Coincidenceor protest?

In the corridors there is a wall with a big picture, a tribute to war reporters. But why the cameraman doesn’t wear a jacket? The other one is just trying to impress the audience?

no jacket bulletproofjacket

The newsrooom of

the HLN news channel

seems like a zoo

with frustrated

journalists trapped

in hi-tech cages.

I saw somereality outside!

I don’t get out since 9/11...

fairness in reporting?

Then we are introducedto Cnn website and the wonders ofcitizen journalism: clips of surfing dogs submitted by the users. WOW!

interactivity ?

To interview some colleagues I go to the reception showing my badge of professional journalist. But I am told to make a phone call, and calling by phone i am told to send an email. CNN people is unreachable!

openness?

What’s the matter with you? I just tried to make 3 questions:

It is true that in atlanta CNN headquarters have a group of editors in charge of censoring the news coming from war zones?

Why do you show like a trophy the SUV used to broadcast the destruction of Saddam Hussein’s statue in april 2003? Everybody knows that it was a fake event constructed for media and not a real people riot.

I sent an email with the questions, let’s see if an answer will ever come. But i think that this is the

ENDof the story.