On March 9th, 2016, Brandon Toy writing for Common Dreams published “Drone Warfare: Death Delivered From a Location Near You.”  Toy’s article focused on the topic of peaceful anti-war protests against the use of drones to kill targets around the world. The topic of peaceful anti-war protests is significant because drone warfare has victimized many innocent people. Since March of 2015, the corporate press has ignored the story of “Drone Warfare: Death Delivered From a Location Near You.”
Toy’s article focused on the topic of peaceful anti-war protests against the use of drones to kill targets around the world. On April 7th, a protest against drone warfare occurred at the Battle Creek National Guard Base in Michigan. Both passersby and the soldiers themselves largely ignored the protesters. Toy, a protesters himself, described the positive attitudes that the protesters were able to maintain, despite being shunned. Toy explains that the point of the protest was not to headline Fox News. His fellow protesters and he simply wanted to voice their resentment. Toy then ends his article reminiscing about when he was a soldier and all the regrets that he has regarding drone strikes.
The topic of peaceful anti-war protests is significant because society needs to be informed of the atrocities that are occurring as a result of drone warfare. The information regarding drone strikes needs to be presented and showcased for more Americans. This may lead to stronger organization for anti-war protests. Brandon Toy, author of “Drone Warfare: Death Delivered From a Location Near You,” explains that he use to believe it was important that the United States to spread its influence to other nations. But after seeing the carnage caused by drone strikes, he now has second thoughts.  There have been dozens of murdered children in Yemen since the year 2002, including sixth grader Mohammed Saleh Qayed Taeiman.  Toy and thousands of Americans do not want to be associated with drone strikes any longer. But until the major news networks provide time to show the numerous small protests that occur in the United States the movement will struggle to grow.
The independent news coverage of “Drone Warfare: Death Delivered From a Location Near You,” has been scant. The Battle Creek Michigan local news, the Battle Creek Enquirer, did a minor report on the incident. Posted on their website, the article is extremely small and lacks any substance.  There is no information provided as to why the protesters were there. No quotes were given as well.
The corporate news coverage of “Drone Warfare: Death Delivered From a Location Near You” has been scant. There has been virtually no coverage of these protests. Instead the media focuses on either pro-military advocates or the issues surrounding drone warfare. The Huffington Post published an article titled, “Drone Protest Gains Steam in Atlanta,” regarding circumstances in Atlanta, Georgia. The article, written by Kate Brumback, is only two paragraphs long and lacks adequate coverage of the story. There is one quote by Bob Goodman, the leader of the protest, saying that drones are essentially bad.  This illustrates how poor the coverage has been on anti-military protests in America.
In conclusion, the story of “Drone Warfare: Death Delivered From a Location Near You,” has been ignored by the corporate media. While many innocent people have become victims of drone warfare, the media continues to distract from the pressing issue. Without proper coverage of stories like this, many more innocent people may be killed by drone strikes.
Source: Brandon Toy, “Drone Warfare:Death Delivered From a Location Near You,” Common Dreams, March 21, 2015, http://www.commondreams.org/views/2015/03/21/drone-warfare-death-delivered-location-near-you.
Student Researchers: Jared Karp (Diablo Valley College) and Justin Lascano (Diablo Valley College)
Faculty Evaluator: Nolan Higdon (California State University, East Bay)