• Tens of Thousands Rally for Humane Immigration Reform
• Senate Immigration Plan Sets Cumbersome Border Requirements
• Obama Budget Plan Endorses Social Security Cuts
• Petition Opposing Chained CPI Draws 2.3 Million Signatures
• Senate to Hold First Gun-Control Vote After Compromise on Background Checks
• Michelle Obama Pushes Gun-Control Vote
• Rhode Island Introduces Gun-Control Measure
• Military Court Raises Burden for Manning Prosecutors; Internet, Phone Access Curbed
• HRW: Over 4,300 Civilians Killed in Syrian Strikes
• U.N. Warns of Funding Shortfall for Syrian Refugees
• Hagel: North Korea "Skating Very Close to a Dangerous Line"
• Witness Ties Guatemalan President to Maya Killings in Montt Trial
• Colombians Stage Nationwide March for Peace
• Canadian Teen Commits Suicide over Alleged Rape, Bullying

Amira Hass, the only Jewish-Israeli journalist to have spent almost 20 years living in and reporting from Gaza and the West Bank, recently suffered a torrent of hate mail and calls for her prosecution after she wrote an article defending the right of Palestinians to resist violent occupation. In the article, Hass defended the throwing of stones by Palestinian youth at Israeli soldiers, calling it "the birthright and duty of anyone subject to foreign rule." Hass said Israelis remain in denial about "how much violence is used on a daily basis against Palestinians. They don’t like to be told that someone has the right to resist their violence." Hass joins us to discuss the reaction to her piece and her response to the latest regional visit by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. Despite vows to revive peace talks and free up the Palestinian economy, Hass says the Obama administration wants to preserve the status quo of occupation. [includes rush transcript]

In his new book, "The Way of the Knife: The CIA, a Secret Army, and a War at the Ends of the Earth," Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times reporter Mark Mazzetti tracks the transformation of the CIA and U.S. special operations forces into man-hunting and killing machines in the world’s dark spaces: the new American way of war. The book’s revelations include disclosing that the Pakistani government agreed to allow the drone attacks in return for the CIA’s assassination of Pakistani militant Nek Muhammad, who was not even a target of the United States. Mazzetti’s reporting on the violence in Pakistan and Afghanistan — and Washington’s response — won him a Pulitzer Prize in 2009. The year before, he was a Pulitzer finalist for his reporting on the CIA’s detention and interrogation program. [includes rush transcript]

• Vote Set to Begin Gun-Control Debate After GOP Backs Down on Filibuster
• Newtown Families Lobby Congress for Gun-Control Vote
• Sen. Inhofe: Obama Admin Using Newtown Families for Issue They Have Nothing to Do With
• Biden: Threat of GOP Filibuster on Gun-Control Vote "Mind-Boggling"
• 6-Year-Old Killed in Accidental Shooting
• 14 Wounded in Stabbing Rampage at Texas College
• Most Borrowers to Receive Paltry Sum from Banks in Foreclosure Settlement
• North Korea Warns South of "Thermonuclear War"
• Earthquake Kills 37 in Iran
• Israeli Troops Shoot Palestinian Journalist in Face for Filming Raid
• Kerry to Meet with Syrian Opposition After Israel-West Bank Visit
• Alabama Gov. Signs Anti-Abortion Law; Arkansas Senate Advances New Curbs
• Jury Awards $236 Million to New Hampshire for ExxonMobil Contamination
• Arkansas Residents File Class Action Suit Against ExxonMobil for Oil Spill
• Elderly Protester Halts Construction of Keystone XL in Oklahoma
• Hundreds of Students Stage Walkout Against Budgets Cuts in New Jersey
• Kelly Wins Illinois Special Election for Vacant House Seat
• NYC to Pay Over $350,000 for Damage in Occupy Wall Street Raid

So-called "ag-gag" bills that criminalize undercover filming on farms and at slaughterhouses to document criminal animal abuse are sweeping the country. Five states, including Missouri, Utah and Iowa, already have such laws in place. North Carolina has just become the latest state to consider such a law, joining a list that includes Arkansas, California, Indiana, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Vermont. Many of these bills have been introduced with the backing of the American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC, a mechanism for corporate lobbyists to help write state laws. We host a debate on the ag-gag laws with two guests: independent journalist Will Potter, and Emily Meredith, communications director for the Animal Agriculture Alliance. [includes rush transcript]

An animal rights investigator details how he has spent over a decade secretly filming animal abuse and why that work is now imperiled by a wave of laws sweeping the country. Speaking on the condition we conceal his identity, "Pete" has secretly captured animal abuse on farms and slaughterhouses after applying to work at the location. He has released video footage to law enforcement and activist groups such as Mercy for Animals, helping spark national outcry and charges against the abusers. His investigations and footage have led to at least 15 criminal cases and have been used in several documentaries. But now Pete’s work is under threat. A dozen or so state legislatures have introduced bills that target people who covertly expose farm animal abuse. Nicknamed "ag-gag" laws, they would make it illegal to covertly videotape livestock farms or apply for a job at one without disclosing affiliations with animal rights groups. They also require activists to hand over undercover videos within 24 hours, preventing them from amassing a trove of material and publicizing their findings on their own. [includes rush transcript]

<li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/9/headlines#490">U.S. to Deploy New Laser Attack Weapon Near Iran</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/9/headlines#491">Kerry Continues Harsh Rhetoric Against Iran During Israeli Visit</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/9/headlines#492">Storage Pits Leaking at Embattled Fukushima Nuclear Plant</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/9/headlines#493">Obama Pushes Gun Control in Connecticut Visit</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/9/headlines#494">Senators Negotiating Deal on Background Checks</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/9/headlines#495">Syria: At Least 15 Killed in Damascus Suicide Blast</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/9/headlines#496">Italy Pardons U.S. Colonel Convicted in Rendition of Egyptian Cleric</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/9/headlines#497">Trial for Osama bin Laden&#x27;s Son-in-Law Could Be Delayed by U.S. Budget Cuts</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/9/headlines#498">WikiLeaks: Vatican Dismissed Reports of Violence Under Pinochet as &quot;Communist Propaganda&quot;</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/9/headlines#499">Julian Assange Hails WikiLeaks&#x27; Release of &quot;Kissinger Cables&quot; in Video Address</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/9/headlines#4910">Chile Exhumes Body of Poet Pablo Neruda to Probe Poisoning Claims</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/9/headlines#4911">Philippines Bills U.S. $1.5 Million for Damages to Coral Reef</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/9/headlines#4912">Hagel Seeks Changes to Military&#x27;s Legal Process for Sexual Assault</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/9/headlines#4913">Maryland Set to Legalize Medical Marijuana</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/9/headlines#4914">Israeli Journalist Amira Hass Faces Backlash for Supporting Palestinian Right to Resist</a></li>

Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher has died at the age of 87. Thatcher was Britain’s first female prime minister, serving three terms in office. Known as the "Iron Lady," Thatcher became synonymous with austerity economics as a close ally of President Ronald Reagan. She famously declared to critics of neoliberal capitalism that "there is no alternative." Her long-running battle with striking British miners dealt a major blow to the union movement in Britain and ushered in a wave of privatizations. On foreign policy, Thatcher presided over the Falklands War with Argentina, provided critical support to the Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet, and famously labeled Nelson Mandela a "terrorist" while backing South Africa’s apartheid regime. We go to London to discuss Thatcher’s legacy with Tariq Ali, British-Pakistani political commentator, writer, activist and editor of the New Left Review. [includes rush transcript]

Icelandic Parliamentarian Birgitta Jónsdóttir played a critical role in WikiLeaks’ release of the "Collateral Murder" video, which showed a U.S. military helicopter in July 2007 as it killed 12 people and wounded two children in Iraq. Jónsdóttir joins us on her first trip to the United States since a secret grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia, began its investigation of WikiLeaks and Julian Assange. She also discusses her role at the center of another closely watched legal case — challenging of the government’s effort to obtain her Twitter records without a warrant — and why she has come to the United States to champion the cases of military whistleblower Bradley Manning and the accused hacker Jeremy Hammond. [includes rush transcript]

The whistleblowing website WikiLeaks has just published "the Kissinger Cables," 1.7 million U.S. diplomatic and intelligence documents from 1973 to 1976 that include many once-secret memos written by former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. While the documents have been available to the public at the National Archives, WikiLeaks has created a searchable online database to allow anyone in the world to quickly search them. WikiLeaks founder and editor Julian Assange reportedly did most of the work creating the database from his refuge in Ecuador’s embassy in London. WikiLeaks spokesperson Kristinn Hrafnsson joins us to discuss the documents’ release. Hrafnsson also comments on the recent anniversary of the release of the "Collateral Murder" military video, which shows U.S. forces killing 12 people in the Iraqi suburb of New Baghdad — including two Reuters employees, Saeed Chmagh and Namir Noor-Eldeen. After WikiLeaks obtained the video, Hrafnsson met with family members of the victims in Iraq. [includes rush transcript]

<li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/8/headlines#480">U.S. Strike Kills 11 Children in Afghanistan</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/8/headlines#481">5 Americans Killed in Afghan Attacks</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/8/headlines#482">U.S. Delays Missile Test, Citing North Korea</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/8/headlines#483">Iran Claims &quot;Good Progress&quot; in Nuclear Talks</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/8/headlines#484">Federal Judge Strikes Down Age Limit on Morning-After Pill</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/8/headlines#485">U.S. Posts Net Gain of 88,000 Jobs in March</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/8/headlines#486">GOP Senator Welcomes Obama Social Security Cuts, Sanders Vows Opposition</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/8/headlines#487">Report: U.S. Killed Militant to Win Pakistani Approval of Drone War</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/8/headlines#488">Activists Protest Drone Warfare at Military Firms</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/8/headlines#489">Georgia High Schoolers Challenge Segregrated Prom</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/8/headlines#4810">&quot;Occupy the Department of Education&quot; Convenes in D.C.</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/8/headlines#4811">Daniel McGowan Released After Arrest Under Outlawed Statute</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/8/headlines#4812">Comedian Dick Gregory Launches Hunger Fast for Lynne Stewart</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/8/headlines#4813">Documentary Filmmaker Les Blank Dies at 77</a></li><li><a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2013/4/8/headlines#4814">Former British PM Margaret Thatcher Dies at 87</a></li>

The new documentary "Shadows of Liberty" had its U.S. premiere last night at the National Conference for Media Reform in Denver. Using individual cases of journalists whose attempts to tell their stories have been muzzled by corporations and the government, the film shows how a corporate-controlled media can silence the truth about issues ranging from war to labor practices. In one instance, CBS refused to re-air an investigation by the prize-winning journalist Roberta Baskin on Nike’s use of sweatshop labor in Vietnam. [includes rush transcript]

A new potential motive has emerged in last month’s killing of Colorado prisons chief Tom Clements: According to The Colorado Independent, the slain suspect Evan Spencer Ebel may have committed murder less out of loyalty to white supremacists, as has been suspected, but rather out of mental anguish produced by years spent in solitary confinement deprived of regular human contact. We’re joined by Colorado Independent Editor Susan Greene. A longtime reporter for The Denver Post, Greene discusses the investigation, as well why she has left the corporate media to preserve and revitalize the Independent as a vital source of political and investigative journalism in Colorado. [includes rush transcript]

Longtime media-reform advocate Robert McChesney looks at how the future of American politics could be largely determined by who controls the Internet in his newest book. "'Digital Disconnect' talks about the difference between the mythology of the Internet, the hope of the Internet, that it would empower people and make democracy triumphant, versus the reality, which is that large corporate monopolies and the government, working together, are taking away the promise of the Internet to suit their interests," says McChesney, the co-founder of Free Press and the National Conference for Media Reform. His book begins with a simple claim: "The ways capitalism works and does not work determine the role the Internet might play in society." [includes rush transcript]

We broadcast from the National Conference for Media Reform in Denver, where some 2,000 people are expected to gather to look at how media, technology and democracy intersect. One of the major topics this year is media consolidation. As newspapers struggle to survive, billionaire brothers David and Charles Koch have expressed interest in buying Tribune Company, which includes the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune. Media mogul Rupert Murdoch is also weighing a bid for the Los Angeles Times in a market where he already owns two television stations. We’re joined by Craig Aaron, president and CEO of Free Press, the main organizer of the National Conference for Media Reform. [includes rush transcript]

• Connecticut Gov. Signs New Gun-Control Law
• Maryland Lawmakers Approve Gun-Control Bill
• Obama Budget to Endorse Cuts to Social Security, Medicare
• NATO Strike Kills 6 in Afghanistan
• U.N. Suspends Aid to Gaza over Safety Concerns
• Over 400 Fast Food Workers Take Part in NYC Strike
• Federal Gov't Agrees to Limit Immigration Raids
• ExxonMobil Eases Arkansas Oil Spill No-Fly Zone
• Protesters at California Fundraisers Urge Obama to Reject Keystone XL
• Environmentalist Daniel McGowan Returned to Prison After Publishing Article
• Use of Offshore Tax Havens Detailed in Leaked Records

A historic trial is underway challenging the New York City Police Department’s controversial "stop-and-frisk" policy as unconstitutional and unfairly targeting people of color. Recent data shows the vast majority of the five million people stopped and frisked by the NYPD over the past decade are African American or Latino, with nearly 90 percent neither ticketed nor arrested. We play secretly recorded police tapes heard in the courtroom and speak to three guests: Sunita Patel, a staff attorney with the Center for Constitutional Rights and co-counsel on the stop-and-frisk federal class action lawsuit; Nicholas Peart, a Harlem resident who testified last month about his multiple experiences being stopped and frisked; and Ryan Devereaux, a journalist covering the trial for The Guardian and The Nation. [includes rush transcript]

Forty-five years ago today, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated on the balcony of his hotel room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. Dr. King was in Memphis to march with sanitation workers demanding a better wage. We air part of a speech he gave to the National Association of Radio Announcers the previous year in Atlanta, Georgia. Dr. King spoke about the power of the media and the horrors of war in Vietnam. [includes rush transcript]

The Associated Press has dropped the phrase "illegal immigrant" from its popular stylebook, a move welcomed by immigrant advocates who argue the term is a dehumanizing slur. The influential AP Stylebook is the definitive guide for reporters and editors both within the news cooperative and beyond. We’re joined by Rinku Sen, publisher of Colorlines.com and president of the Applied Research Center, which launched the the "Drop the I-Word" campaign in 2010 in order to remove the term "illegals" from everyday use and public discourse. [includes rush transcript]

As North Korea threatens to launch a nuclear attack on the United States, the Obama administration is quietly expressing concern its own recent actions may have been too provocative and could inadvertently trigger a deeper crisis. We discuss the latest on North Korea and tensions in the region with Christine Hong, assistant professor at University of California, Santa Cruz, and an executive board member of the Korea Policy Institute. She has spent time in North Korea, including a visit to the country as part of a North American peace delegation. [includes rush transcript]