Independent Media Centers (IMC), since their inception in late 1999, have attracted much attention from the corporate media. Most reports fail to recognize the legitimacy of the grassroots journalism that gives the IMC network its vitality, and tend to lump IMCs into a big mass of anti-war or so-called anti-globalization demonstrators. Often reporters have focused on the use of technology in organizing demonstrations, with a local collective at the center of the discussion due to the self-publishing feature common to all IMCs.

Though the distinction between demonstrators and IMC reporters rarely is seen when you're a cop, readers and participants of SF Indymedia are clear on the subject. Surprisingly, the Associated Press hasn't been able to grasp the distinction. In an article from 3/27, the AP wrote, "Before the invasion of Iraq began, the San Francisco Bay Area Independent Media Center solicited volunteers to stage sit-ins in particular intersections. When sit-ins sparked police confrontations, the group published live video on its Web site." This statement is humorous, given that while there are all kinds of calls from people who publish to this site, none come from the collective that maintains it.

AP reporters are encouraged to continue struggling against the ideological framework that inhibits their understanding of the open publishing and the Independent Media Center phenomenon.