The Mainstream Media’s Worst Excuses For Lack Of Bilderberg Coverage

The Bilderberg Group remains controversial, to a relatively small number of people who are aware of it, because it continues to operate in secret year after year. The group’s meetings are comparable to other major political and economic conferences like the World Economic Forum and the G20, so why doesn’t it get similar coverage from major media?

Here are some of the worst excuses given by the mainstream media for the scant coverage of the conference.

1. Denial of its existence. (It doesn’t exist therefore it a can’t be reported on.)

The denial by journalists of the groups existence can come in two forms. A journalist who knows that the group exists and denies it, or a journalist who doesn’t actually know about the group and feels so confident about their understanding of the world that they can’t imagine such a group exists without them knowing.

The group’s steering committee contains members of the establishment media and top journalists are often invited. Since the group has a policy of secrecy, those who attend have a choice to make when asked about the group. They can admit they attended the meetings and cite the group’s policy of secrecy for not reporting. They could also deny they attended, or even deny that the group exists. At one time, it may have been effective for journalists attending the group meetings to simply deny that it existed, but with the internet and alternative media, that is not a realistic option today.

The more common reason for the denial of Bilderberg’s existence is that, while it may be hard to believe, the group is still a secret to many journalists working for the mainstream media.

When asked about the group in 2012, MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell revealed that he was totally unaware of it. He to told Luke Rudkowski that there was no such thing, and when Rudkouski insisted that he had been there and witnessed many important political and corporate figures attending, O’Donnell smugly insisted he was wrong and that he was being lied to.

2. They don’t know about it. (It might exist, but I haven’t heard of it so I haven’t reported on it.)

This response may overlap with the first, but doesn’t require the journalist’s assertion that the group doesn’t exist. In 2008 Tucker Carlson was asked for his opinion about the role of various secretive organizations in world affairs. He casually dismissed the concern as a conspiracy theory, but when it came to the Bilderberg Group he admitted that he didn’t know what it was. He stated, “Bilderbergers? I hear that term, but I’m not really sure what it is.” Lawrence O’Donnel’s previously mentioned response partially falls into this category.

3. It is not important. (I know it exists, but it is not relevant so I won’t report on it.)

Often the excuse given for the lack of Bilderberg coverage is that it is not important enough to cover. This excuse often comes in the form of claiming the meetings are more of a social club than a political conference. The BBC quoted Times columnist David Aaronovitch as saying, “The gnashing of teeth over Bilderberg is ridiculous,” and that, “It’s really an occasional supper club for the rich and powerful.”

O’Donnel partially used this excuse as well saying that it wasn’t important because he didn’t know about it.

Tucker Carlson hinted at this by saying that while he didn’t know, he guessed that if you were able to sneak into a Bilderberg meeting, “you would be so bored, you would nod off.”

4. The Bilderberg’s secrecy inhibits their ability to report. (They make it difficult to cover so we don’t even try.)

In 2008, Reuters reporter Jack Shafer conceded that Bilderberg critics were right about two things; the mainstream media ignored the group, and that, “the meeting of 120 prominent world figures probably constitutes some kind of news.” He then gives the excuse that, “it’s tough to report from a private gathering locked down tight by professional security.”

That may be true, but it hasn’t stopped alternative media like Infowars along with concerned citizens from doing their best to gather information and raise awareness. Without their efforts there would be far less known and reported about the group, especially when you consider that a majority of the mainstream media’s coverage of the group is concerned with the so called conspiracy theorists who are bringing attention to it.