Investigative reporter Robert Parry on American journalism, now, and what we’re not being told about the living history of our country.

In this file photo, National Security Aide Oliver North, right, applauds Iran-Contra figure and former CIA station chief Joseph Fernandez, left, as he is congratulated by Contra leader Adolfo Calero, center, during a reception in Miami, Florida on Friday, June 30, 1989 to raise funds for Fernandez. (AP)

Investigative reporter Robert Parry is the kind of relentless digger that no small part of the American news media find too hot to handle. He went deep, back in the day, on American hostages, the “October surprise,” and the election of Ronald Reagan. He went deep on Iran-Contra and the adventures of the CIA in the cocaine trade. He’s still at it, writing and publishing unpopular truths. And talking about how too often we don’t know our own living history. And the news media’s not telling us. He just won the I.F. Stone Medal for Journalistic Independence. This hour On Point, tough reporter Robert Parry.

-- Tom Ashbrook

Guest

Robert Parry, award-winning investigative reporter, author and documentary filmmaker. Editor of Consortium News. Former reporter for the Associated Press, Newsweek and PBS Frontline. Author of "America's Stolen Narrative," "Neck Deep," "Lost History" and many others. (@Consortiumnews)

From Tom’s Reading List

Consortium News: Hillary Clinton’s Failed Libya ‘Doctrine’ — "As the long-running Benghazi investigation returns to center stage with another round of Hillary Clinton’s testimony, the former Secretary of State’s larger failure remains obscured – how she once envisioned the bloody Libyan 'regime change' as the start of a 'Clinton Doctrine.'"

AlterNet: How the Government Spins False Narratives to Control the Message — "In this age of pervasive media, the primary method of social control is through the creation of narratives delivered to the public through newspapers, TV, radio, computers, cell phones and any other gadget that can convey information. This reality has given rise to an obsession among the power elite to control as much of this messaging as possible."

MediaMatters: Iran-Contra Reporters: Benghazi Hearings "More Partisan" And An "Attack" On Hillary Clinton — "Robert Parry, who reported on the Iran-Contra hearings for Newsweek, and previously covered the issue for the Associated Press, called comparisons with Benghazi 'rather silly.' 'It is a very limited, much smaller issue than Iran-Contra, which covered years of deceit and violations of U.S. law compared to one discreet incident,' Parry said, saying that Benghazi 'has been beaten into the ground by multiple investigations that have gone on endlessly.'"