AlterNet

{{media}}{{internet}}

AlterNet is an '''Alter'''native inter'''Net''' [[liberal]] news outlet. They cover topics left out of mainstream "corporate media" (such as positive coverage of the [[Occupy Wall Street]] movement) and expose underhanded establishment politicians and businesses. Trouble is, they have a bad habit of indulging in [[woo]]. In many ways, they're like a more aggressive [[The Huffington Post|HuffPo]]: as long as they're not talking about [[science]] outside of [[evolution]], [[cosmology]] or [[climate change]], they're okay.

==Good stuff==
===Occupy Wall Street===
{{main|Occupy Wall Street}}
AlterNet devoted an inordinate amount of digital ink to the topic of Occupy Wall Street.<ref>As you can see [http://www.alternet.org/occupy-wall-street here], they have an entire page dedicated to it.</ref> They, along with a handful of other independent media outlets, gave decent and fair coverage of the events happening at Zucotti Park and other Occupy movements that were happening throughout the world.

===Feminism and misogyny===
{{main|1=Feminism|3=Misogyny}}
AlterNet is one of a very few internet media sources that does not cater to [[MRA]]'s shouting '''[[misandry|MISANDRY]]!'''<ref> Seriously, [http://www.alternet.org/tags/feminism check it out!]</ref> They frequently host articles addressing sexual violence and assault, dealing with [[Feminist_internet_laws#Anita.27s_Irony|women in video games]] and generally about how treating women terribly is a bad thing and what it does to not only women, but also ''men'' in society.

==Bad stuff==
===Pseudoscience===
{{main|Pseudoscience}}
AlterNet has a bad habit of promoting woo. The worst of these is by far their stance on [[GMO]]s: they stridently avoid asking actual scientists' opinions on the topic or reading a single [[peer-reviewed]] paper by them on the subject (aside from those by [[Gilles-Eric Séralini|this dipshit]]<ref>[http://www.alternet.org/food/major-study-demonstrates-monsanto-gmo-corn-product-can-cause-damage-liver-and-kidneys-and Here] is AlterNet running a story about the infamous Séralini paper as legitimate and accepted science.</ref>), have frequently misrepresented data regarding transgenic organisms<ref>[http://www.alternet.org/environment/monsantos-linked-fatal-kidney-disease-epidemic-could-it-topple-company?paging=off&current_page=1#bookmark Here] is a story misrepresenting conclusions from a paper regarding glyphosate and kidney disease in places where the herbicide is used with hard water contamination in order to show how "'''MONSATAN''' is poisoning us with '''GMOs'''"!.</ref> and will happily castigate anyone that doesn't toe the [[quack]] line.<ref>[http://www.alternet.org/food/uncovering-real-story-behind-conversion-mark-lynas-climate-change-journalist-cheerleader Here they are] calling [[Mark Lynas]] a shill for [[Monsanto]] for discovering the actual science behind transgenic crops and thus no longer supporting anti-GMO woo.</ref> As if that's not bad enough, AlterNet has even dabbled in a little bit of [[radiophobia]]<ref>[http://www.alternet.org/story/153299/radiation_from_cell_phones_and_wifi_are_making_people_sick_--_are_we_all_at_risk Because cellphones emit <b>RADIATION</b> and <b>RADIATION</b> causes <b>CANCER</b>!]</ref> and thinks toothpaste is bad for your health.<ref>[http://www.alternet.org/personal-health/toothpaste-dangerous-your-health Because toothpaste contains] [[fluoride]] (among other things) and it's an [[Chemophobia|icky chemikill]]!</ref>

On the upside, AN has taken it upon itself to trashing [[Whole Foods Market Inc]] largely for its [[Libertarian]] "fuck you, got mine" stance.<ref>Mostly due to how it treats its workers [http://www.alternet.org/food/exposed-how-whole-foods-and-biggest-organic-foods-distributor-are-screwing-workers as a whole...]</ref><ref>... and at [http://www.alternet.org/labor/how-working-full-time-job-whole-foods-left-me-broke the individual level.]</ref> Sadly, it seems that attacking those cultish, pseudoscience positions would be rather hypocritical for the rag.

===Assadist propaganda===
{{main|Syria}}
AlterNet used to host ''[[The Grayzone]] Project'', a space for the alleged Kremlin-linked{{citation needed|date=April 2021}} [[Assad]]ist Max Blumenthal and his protege Ben Norton to express their admiration for the lion of Damascus, and attack any perceived opponents of the Syrian regime by branding them radical Islamists. Such opponents included the White Helmets,<ref>{{wpa|White_Helmets_(Syrian_Civil_War)}}</ref> Syrian children who suffered gas attacks and were accused of faking it, and of course, any Western journalists who dared to say that maybe chemical attacks on Syria’s own people aren’t super great for the image of anti-Imperialism which they purported to represent. Much of the claims published by these characters were subsequently disproven by the UN. Around February 2018, AlterNet finally pulled the plug on ''The Grayzone Project''.<ref>[https://www.alternet.org/grayzoneproject/ Grayzone Project] at alternet.org. This page still exists as of June 2018, although no posts from Blumenthal appear to have been posted since December 2017.</ref> More simply known as ''The Grayzone'', Blumenthal's project continues with opaque funding.

==External links==
*[http://alternet.org AlterNet homepage]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

{{foodbox}}

[[Category:GMO]]
[[Category:Pseudoscience promoting organizations]]
[[Category:Radiophobia]]

Categories: GMO, Pseudoscience promoting organizations, Radiophobia