ATS a "crackpot American website"

As I posted here in April 2008, British pop star Robbie Williams has mentioned participating on ATS in various interviews (see ATS gets a plug from pop star Robbie Williams. While ATS got mentioned in various newspaper articles as a result, usually they were just passing references.

Now a new article on the website of one of the biggest British newspapers (The Daily Mail) includes a more detailed discussion of ATS.

It is not very flattering...

The article states that Robbie Williams now spends time "trawling avidly through the sort of crackpot American websites that spout half-baked conspiracy theories and anti-government propaganda" and discusses "little-known AboveTopSecret.com" as "one such underground website".

Somewhat worryingly, friends say that much of his [i.e. Robbie Williams] time online is spent trawling avidly through the sort of crackpot American websites that spout half-baked conspiracy theories and anti-government propaganda.

One such underground website that Robbie has become a member of is the little-known AboveTopSecret.com, which dresses up gossip and anti-state paranoia as fact for its gullible subscribers.

One of its major recent stories involved claims that the imminent changeover to digital TV from analogue is nothing to do with clearer television pictures, but is instead a plot by the U.S. government to 'monitor and record every household in the U.S.' by placing hidden microphones and miniature cameras inside new sets.

Another post announces with unswerving certainty that not only can FBI spy satellites see through brick walls into homes, they can also read the minds of citizens and can scan the brains and memories of humans as if they were computers.

Robbie, the Mail has learnt, regularly logs on to the website using his codenames 'cyar' and, bizarrely, 'chrisonabike' to chat with other members about his interest in UFOs.

Even more bizarrely, he has allowed himself to appear on the site in a taped interview during which he happily discusses what he believes were alien visitations to him while he was living in America.

Can someone post links to the threads discussed in the extract above so that we can see how members of ATS reacted to the theories advanced?

Does this article give a fair reflection of ATS?

If not, can ATS improve how it is perceived by main stream reporters?

As some of you know, I certainly think there is room for improvement on ATS. I'll be posting some more detailed thoughts on this shortly.

Kind Regards,

Isaac

Click here for more information.

Originally posted by IsaacKoi
"trawling avidly through the sort of crackpot American websites that spout half-baked conspiracy theories and anti-government propaganda"

"paranoia as fact for its gullible subscribers. "

Gullible subscribers? ........ propaganda?

They sound like hypocrites to me

This is exactly why I come onto ATS and listen to the things that people have to say, regardless if they are fact or fiction. How many conspiricies havebeen unvieled over the course of the past 50 years? Can anyone count? Howmany times have conspiricies came true? Many Many times.
And that is why so many people chose to turn off their News stations and start talking amongst each other, and I believe that is the best way to find the source of many of the problems we have here today. If we did not talk amongst ourselves, even about the pitty things, then we are letting the establishment run our lives. We as humans, need closure. I think that many people who are so against people posting on this website, are people that have yet to question authority, and that is the downfall of America, not the people who are in searh of the truth. The day I turn on the news to search for truth is the day that I as a human being, turn off my soul. I am somewhat glad that the paper ran this article, even if it was a low blow to the internet and ATS community by dishonoring those people who are just in search of a higher knowledge because it gives us the power to say 'hey, without us conspiracy loons many people in the world that have committed wrong doings wouldnt have ever been brought to justice'. I think more people are starting to catch on to the fact that everything isnot as it seems, and that really, really scares the major media and its global masters.

Its a hack piece Issac.

Its typical tabloid rubbish, published in the Daily Mail - they thrive on kicking people who are out of the limelight with speculative rubbish.

It doesn't give a fair reflection of ATS at all - but then what do you expect of the British press?

Yes but you see how more gullible could you get than people that buy newspapers like that.
They would print anything to try and sell more newspapers.
They frequently tell absurd lies, and some of the reporters have massive hidden agenda's and are not reporting things from an informational perspective.
More a personal perspective.
I think the daily mail would have to have some of the most insane, unprofessional journalists in the world.
In fact some of them are not fit to be called journalists.
Lets face it anyone can get a degree in journalism, it doesn't mean you are necessarily going to be any good at it, does it.

www.abovetopsecret.com...' - FBI spy satellites see through brick walls and brain scanning. IMO what ATS could do is ban/post ban the op of that thread and his puppet(s) because of his 5th "I fooled you" post. Its sad that the bigger the pool is, the more people will WANT to pee in it.

The Biographer's New Clothes

From the source article:
One such underground website that Robbie has become a member of is the little-known AboveTopSecret.com, which dresses up gossip and anti-state paranoia as fact for its gullible subscribers.

Coming from a gossip columnist, this sentence is positively pregnant with irony.

Of particular poignance is the fact that in virtually every way possible, Mr. Scott has misrepresented ATS to a degree that mere ignorance or chance cannot reasonably explain. He writes as if he has never actually explored the site, and doesn't even obliquely purport to understand what ATS is actually about.

In the age of the Internet, how terribly difficult can it be for Mr. Scott to simply log in, look around and do a little first-hand research? Is he truly incapable of understanding what different points of view are, and how an Internet discussion forum works? Does he really think ATS members believe everything they read?

Is the idea of civil, candid discussion of unorthodox subjects really so threatening to him that he can't be bothered to experience it for himself?

I think it would be wonderful if Mr. Scott would take time out from his busy schedule to visit ATS and witness first-hand how wrong he is.

Granted, it may not be as glamorous as sorting through trash bins or interviewing prostitutes, and he may find our community's standards for evidence more demanding than those he's accustomed to at The Daily Mail, but ultimately, should he choose to educate himself about the ATS community instead of benightedly deriding us, he might well Deny Ignorance, even if just a little.

The editors and article researchers of that paper have probably lurked here long before that pop star ever learned about ATS.

Not only does ATS have excellent topics, but plenty of tabloid material for those kinds of papers to have a free for all wealthy source for stories.



Cheers!!!!

It's true..We're over the top, and loaded to the gills with Hyperbole.
How dare us.


And now, for something completely different. A headline, courtesy of the Daily Mail
Watch out! Poisonous comet which glows green to light up the night sky

[edit on 9-2-2009 by spacedoubt]

What a good job ATS wouldn't lower it's standards to the level of The Daily Mail.

We could spend a lifetime here debating the rubbish that paper will write to sell papers.

As pointed out, it is plainly clear from the article that the paper does not do it's research before spewing nonsense like this.

Quite sad really.

CX.

Originally posted by neformore
It doesn't give a fair reflection of ATS at all - but then what do you expect of the British press?

I wouldn't have continued posting here for the past few years if I thought it was a fair reflection, but I posed two questions in my original post above and I don't think anyone has tackled the second one. The two questions were:

(1) Does this article give a fair reflection of ATS?

(2) If not, can ATS improve how it is perceived by main stream reporters?

All the best,

Isaac

reply to post by spacedoubt


ha ha ha
good find!

and yea rburns ... even on general messageboards you get the media lurking for stories. they do it over here too. good publicity.

reply to post by IsaacKoi


In answer to your second question Isaac, I really don't think that anything ATS can do will improve how the MSM look at us here. SO many of them come into this area of conspiracies, UFO's and the paranormal with such preconceived ideas that it would take something special to break their barriers.

I'm pretty sure that ATS already has a press kit, perhaps this could be updated with some examples of 'serious' threads where some insight has been shown.

Other than that - perhaps get ATS's name out there more - write to any papers who accuse us being 'kooks' or whatever and attempt to put the record straight.

Nevertheless, my learned friend, I think we are on to a losing battle here with the MSM.

Peace,

MGGG

edit to add: I really don't think that calling a long standing and respected member 'a troll' is on, is it, ExMislTech?

[edit on 9-2-2009 by machinegun_go_go]

[edit on 9-2-2009 by machinegun_go_go]

you know, it just dawned on me that we here at ATS have been known to bash the MSM for a long time. I am not suprised at all that they would have written an article about us.

Do I think its a fair interpretation? of course not.
Do I think we are fair on interpreting them? Most of the time.

reply to post by IsaacKoi



I remember the digital TV thread assuming there was just one. I posted to explain some technical details because quite simply members were guessing. If the mail wanted to find some media orientated thread that was just silly this could be the one.



yep found it this is the one I posted on
could be others

www.abovetopsecret.com...


MJ2

Originally posted by IsaacKoi

(2) If not, can ATS improve how it is perceived by main stream reporters?

Only by conforming to mainstream subjects. I dont think we need the mainstreams blessings.

Crossing A Muddy Stream

Originally posted by IsaacKoi
(2) If not, can ATS improve how it is perceived by main stream reporters?

Only if main stream reporters become members, log in often and learn for themselves what ATS is all about.

As long as they are content to beat up straw men instead of studying the facts, there's nothing we can do for them.

We can be only who we are.

If they don't care about the truth, the failure is theirs, not ours.




[edit on 2/9/2009 by Majic]

Originally posted by IsaacKoi

(2) If not, can ATS improve how it is perceived by main stream reporters?

Conventionally? Probably nothing. I'm sure that the Amigo's could re-state their position, and point out the unfairness of the article, but the Daily Mail is just as likely to laugh that off as they have done with the subject in the article.

Its become ingrained into our society as a whole that questioning the norm is to be ridiculed.

All ATS can do is continue existing, searching, looking, exposing and trying to explain unusual things.

When we hit a big story - as we have done in the past - then people tend to take note. And the more quality stuff we bring into the open, the more people will pay attention, and then our profile rises without the need for better perception by those who only seek to ridicule.

the papers will get sold and the masses get something to gossip about but in all honesty this dosn't bother me one bit.....

the fact that they featured x2 stories regarding topics that are a little out of the ordinary as apposed to the quality discussion / research / that goes on is example enough to prove that this was wriiten only to discredit and stir the pot a little.....

Do some realy journo work and investigate the real stories in the world you cowards