by  George Wells

Ever since the “smart” meter controversy began in British Columbia over a year ago, the media has been suspiciously quiet.

If it hadn’t been for various letters to the editor—the only method of debate the corporate media is allowing—and a few scant pieces on the TV news, British Columbians might not even know that there were people strongly opposed to BC Hydro’s smart meter program. Of course it doesn’t help that BC Hydro downplays the numbers of those opposed.
Take a look at the mainstream press and few, if any, are actually writing/broadcasting indepth
stories on the matter. Aside from a couple of editorials by Province columnist Mike Smyth
(http://www.theprovince.com/technology/Smart+meters+will+Hydro+cash/5621004/stor
y.html) and a decent piece in TheTyee (http://thetyee.ca/Opinion/2011/03/21/SmartMeterRush/), the province’s two biggest
papers are dead silent on the matter. What comes as no surprise, even The Province
couldn’t allow their client’s precious smart meter program to be tarnished; they have
since removed Mike Smyth’s column on the “smart meter cash cow” from their website.
An honourable mention goes out to the Georgia Straight for some decent objective pieces
on dumb meters.
However, none of the big players are carrying out the investigative journalism for smart
meters that they would normally carry out on other subjects. No journalists are testing BC
Hydro’s claims that the radio frequency emitted from their meters are safe, much less
exposing the BC Liberals insiders profiting from the entire fiasco. Fortunately, Youtube
and the blogosphere are exposing some of these BC Liberals’ lies to those with
inquisitive minds. (See various Youtube videos showing constant radio frequency spiking
of BC Hydro’s smart meters as well as abuse by Hydro installers, for starters).
Major BC Liberals insider and The Vancouver Sun
The Vancouver Sun is owned by Postmedia Network Inc., whose director, David
Emerson, is a BC Liberals insider directly benefiting from Corix’ takeover of BC Hydro
and the implementation of the Bolshevist smart grid. (Yes, the smart grid is all about
collectivization)


This is the systematic phasing out of a public utility, which is mutating into the private for-profit Corix.

Biggest media shill for smart meters: Tom Fletcher


But the biggest, most obvious gatekeeper in this fiasco has to be Black Press’ corporate
codger Tom Fletcher, an obvious neo-conservative hell bent on indoctrinating the masses
with his partisan propaganda, whether it is cheerleading the HST (Tom Fletcher – Sleazy
Journalism – http://www.jlsreport.com/?p=1741) or the glories of the technocrats’ ‘smart’grid.
To have a journalist write one or two pieces in favour of one view is quite normal. But to
have a so-called journalist write several, then spend hours a day tweeting the same views
is quite another thing.
Fletcher’s gatekeeping “editorials” began appearing at least as far back as last summer and are regularly (ordered?) passed down throughout Black Press’s community affiliates (over 100) across the province. After all, damage control extends to rural B.C., too.

Some of Fletchers hit pieces on the anti-dumb meter movement appear here:
Smart meter foes strike back
http://blogs.bclocalnews.com/victoria_view/smart-meter-foes-strike-back/879


UBCM delegates dive into radio waves
http://blogs.bclocalnews.com/victoria_view/ubcm-delegates-dive-into-radio-waves/927


On microwaves, and the physics of smart meters
http://blogs.bclocalnews.com/victoria_view/on-microwaves-and-the-physics-of-smartmeters/
953


An engineer scolds me on smart meters
http://blogs.bclocalnews.com/victoria_view/an-engineer-scolds-me-on-smart-meters/944
This is supposed to be objective reporting? Fletcher is also touted as being a Legislative
reporter, if you can believe that.
Then there are the 2,000-plus tweets of Fletchers, many of which belittle and ridicule
those opposed to smart meters. He makes numerous ad hominem and strawman attacks,
even going as far as posting photos of people wearing tinfoil hats—an obvious smear
campaign in the face of all ethical standards of journalism.
Editors at the Sun and the Province would never be able to get away with such bias.
(Those editors simply ignore the issues surrounding dumb meters). But Black Press
continues to allow Fletcher to deconstruct any journalistic integrity they may have had.
One Twitterite got Fletcher a little nervous recently when he played the massive
hypocrite. Here is the following dialogue from mid January.


NoSmartMetersBC then replied with:

Fletcher, obviously embarrassed, deleted the tweet within minutes. Fletcher was actually

lecturing his followers and those in the hash tags on objectivity at

http://onlinejournalismblog.com/2012/01/16/comment-call-objectivity-and-impartialitya-

newsroom-policy-for-student-projects/ .

The gatekeeping of the technocracy also extends to the TV media, which to this point,

has done a slightly better job than print media; however, they, too, have done no real

investigative journalism and, instead, simply regurgitate the propaganda from BC Hydro

that: everything is safe, nothing to see here, move along.

In an unconventional move last week, both the Vancouver Sun and the CBC embedded at

Youtube hit piece with no article

(http://www.cbc.ca/daybreaksouth/2012/02/23/misconceptions-and-smart-meter-myths/)

on their websites. There was no article, nothing to quantify it. Very strange, especially

considering they won’t post a Youtube video to the contrary. News agencies rarely, if

ever, post solo videos period!

British Columbia media no strange bedfellows to BC Liberals

The media in B.C. have a history of whoring with neo-conservative governments. The

former BCTV almost single handedly brought down the Glen Clark government. Several

former news anchors with BCTV (and Global) have close ties with the BC Liberals. And

lets not forget the recently outed CBC Legislative reporter Stephen Smart and his ties to Christy Clark.

And under the various abuses of power by Gordon Campbell, the BC Liberals, and

Christy Clark, the media has been soft, at best. The criminal BC Liberals have been in

power for more than 10 years despite Railgate, Campbell’s drunken escapades, the HST,

the smart meter fiasco, run-of-the-river projects, and more.

One thing is clear from the above: there is no free press in British Columbia, even in the rural media.