CNN's Aaron Brown Replies to Media For Democracy

[Desertrose]

Just got this email....so what do you all think..."lemmings"? puhleese!

DR
==========

A letter from CNN managing editor and news anchor Aaron Brown has given us pause. Over the past five days, Media for Democracy members have sent more than 10,000 letters to television media executives asking them to devote more airtime to the problems of electronic voting machines.

On Monday our efforts seemed to have yielded fruit. CNN ran a story on these machines. Yesterday, I wrote Brown to thank him and ask that he engage Media for Democracy members in a constructive dialogue on CNN standards for election coverage.

His reply follows:

= = = = = = = = = =
"No I will not. Further because this cut and paste campaign has annoyed the hell out of me for a week I won't even pay attention to what you guys want or say or think or do. There is no skill and no passion in cutting and pasting. It's just what lemmings do. I can't begin to tell you how offended I am by it all. You may feel free to pass this along to the rest of the group."
= = = = = = = = = =



Is his reply a legitimate complaint about our methods or is it another case of a media executive refusing to be responsive to his public? Does this executive consider "lemmings" those CNN viewers who are concerned enough about an issue to send him a letter? If his complaints are legitimate, what then should CNN's viewing public do to get the right attention of media executives?

In the past, individual letters to media executives have tended to go unanswered. Our cumulative effort (more than 10,000 letters sent thus far), did receive a reply, but this was not the constructive dialogue we had asked for.

We thought it would be best to send the issue back to you for suggestions:

What more can we do to make mainstream media responsive to our concerns about their shortcomings in election coverage? Or should Media for Democracy stay the course and continue our methods to disrupt the Big Media status quo with mass-email, fax and phone requests for more accountability?

Please respond via our citizens' forum at:

http://www.mediachannel.org/forums/mfd.html

You can also email me directly at [e-mail].

[samsingh]

Aaron Brown is looking for an excuse

to whore for shrub

[wjittermoss]

30. He doesn't reply that way to the RW funddies when they have a mail-in

They have been doing it longer than the Dems and have the money to do it faster and better.

[The Zanti Regent]

56. Who cares what that PRESSTITUTE Aaron Clown says?

He is every bit the Nazi that Göebbels was, and more!

[montanacowboy]

1. Actually Lou Dobbs

had a great segment on last night about the machines - he seemed really pissed to hear that it might not be fixed before 2006!

[mountainvue]

48. Lou was on it

all night again tonight.

[sadiesworld]

2. What an ASSHOLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Fridays Child]

3. He is dismissive, abrasive, and accusatory. This isn't the first time...

...he's shown his disdain for Liberals.

Most of us barely have the spare time to read a newspaper, let alone sit down to write letters regarding important issue. Wide use of the same letter is simply a way of voicing agreement with the sentiments expressed therein. Most people understand that. And I doubt that Mr. Brown speaks for everyone in his profession.

[Sagan]

4. That's disappointing

Individual letters get ignored. Mass letter writing campaigns are "annoying".

So, what folks like Brown are saying is that they dont' WANT to hear from us in any way shape or form. They have their focus groups, their empty suits in marketing and programming and they don't NEED to hear from viewers or concerned citizens.

You'll watch what they damn well tell you to watch and you'll like it!

Very elitist.

[Desertrose]

10. Bingo! They don't want to hear. period.

They don't want to hear from us at all...they just want to tell us what to think, how to think and who to vote for....

oh yeah, and don't forget the ratings ratings ratings......

He's annoyed...well too darn bad...I'm a littel annoyed that the media is a big fat corporate whorefest! Maybe he needs to pay a bit of attention to the subject matter....but then if they just declare the news why DO they need to hear from us....rught?

*sigh*
DR

[tom_paine]

22. Rose, please PM me Mr. Brown's e-mail

I have had discussions with him before and I would appreciate giving him my 2 cents.

Of course, as the 2 cents of an unwashed peon (and a veteran and molecular biologist, not that such things matter to Media Whores)it will likely be dismissed, but I have to try.

Looking forward to your PM.

[Desertrose]

23. check your inbox

afraid I'm not much help tho :)

I'd like to give him more than 2 cents worth
:evilgrin:

Peace
DR

[seabeyond]

5. email back in same fashion

that they received a reply. tell him they respect his position yet an individual letter doesnt seem to express a concern, so how can the public participate and be heard without offending him, yet open dialogue up in the most respectful of ways, cause we are willing

[Qutzupalotl]

13. Or if you're feeling feisty, say

"Hi! I bet you think because you're writing to (your name), that you won't get a response. We are very busy, and are not able to respond personally to every email, but please rest assured that we do read every one. Thanks for writing!"

[seabeyond]

15. lol lol

wink

[Sagan]

6. And another thing...

Didn't the NPR ombudsman go through this exact same situation and in the end conclude that mass-emailings / letter writings are an important part of citizen involvement in the democratic process?

Someone should send that statement to Mr. Brown.

[rucky]

7. So what's more effective: 500 hand-written letters or 10,000 cut & paste

I tend to lean toward Aaron Brown on this one, but I wouldn't have been such an a-hole about it.

[OKNancy]

27. Brown is one of the few

who actually enjoys a good e-mail debate and will engage writers in conversation if they are intelligent and don't act like jerks.

Personally, I think the BBV people go overboard sometimes...just my opinion.

[papau]

8. Mass email fine - but why send 10,000 spam to friends like Aaron?

We have his attention already.

just my opinion -

Peace

:-)

[RapidCreek]

28. Quite obviously "we" don't have his attention...nor does the isseu

which is really telling. Frankly if the fucker had a brain in his head and or was worth spit as a journalist "we" wouldn't have to tell him about BBV. He'd know more about it than any of us...he'd be outraged and he'd do his duty as a journalist and cover the story with at least the same regularity as the Scott Pederson trial. Obvioulsy he believes that the Scott Pederson trial is of more import than the sanctity of the nations voting aparatus...which speaks volumes about the asswipe.

He's annoyed? Perhaps if he did his fucking job like a professional people wouldn't be inspired to annoy him. Frankly I am annoyed....that he covers the same tired, played out shit night after night after night. Micheal Jackson, Janet Jackson, Martha Stewart, Soctt Pederson, Koby Bryant ad nauseum....Talk about annoying, and boring, and infantile, and appealing to the lowest common denominator. Calling the dork a journalist is stretching it....he's less of a journalist than the average writer for the Enquirier...hell, at least they don't take themselves seriously like this arrogant sanctimonious ass.

Perhaps he should be asked this simple question. If ten thousand average Joes are aware enough of the BBV isseu to send you the same fucking email...why the hell aren't you?.... and if you are, why do you spend your time telling us about cum stains and bared tits?

RC

If your out there Aaron...send me a PM....I'll engage you in all the personal debate you like, you little pimp. Better yet, invite me to be on your show...if you have the nuts. I'll have time to block out next month.

[papau]

29. Aaron makes clear that bad process will stop discourse

When I email him I do not use "lie" because that shows intent - and how do I know the intent? If I break the rules I go on the do not read list.

More to the point, he is a nice Minn. liberal - one of the few with a show on TV.

When I see his producer snap his chain because he saying something obvious to me, but just as lie must be called falsehood on CNN, it is something CNN 's producer feels needs be phrased in softer lanuage, I wonder if I could do his job.

For years I was the lone liberal in the board room - or on senior staff - and I was jerked around. I tended to quit every few years.

I wish Aaron good luck - we need what few liberals in semi-powerful position that we have. Katy Couric was at best honest - and now appears to have been assigned a dark side minder. ABC/NBC/CBS TV anchor's admit that the guy who signs the check calls the shots, no matter what the personal analysis.

[RapidCreek]

35. I assume you mean...

if you use the word lie...it infers you know the intent of the person who uttered the "falsehood". That being said perhaps you or who ever else sends an email regarding a falsehood does know the intent of the person who has uttered it. A good journalist would investigate the pretense upon which the accusation of lying was made....he or she would not ignore the source.

The fact is...if he knowingly colors a story to appease his producer he is NOT doing his job, unless of course, his job is to obfuscate and disseminate half truths and propaganda, in which case he should not refer to himself as a journalist, as doing so is lying. That's the rub.....the reason that Aaron reacts with such angst. He knows he is living a lie....and profiting from it at the expense of the public it is his responsibility to inform. Indeed such a conundrum must be irritating and Aaron hasn't the balls to direct that irritation at those who deserve it.....no, he takes the cowards route and lashes out at the public.

I like you have been a liberal "in the board room". I was not jerked around...and when someone tried to jerk me around I'd draw blood and be tolerated, get fired or quit. In any case I did not and will not compromise myself. I have been black balled in some circles and might die a poor man...I'll die a proud, honest and honorable poor man though. I have and always will have the balls to direct my anger at those who deserve it.

Whether Aaron is a liberal or not is inconsequential. I have more respect for Lou Dobbs...hardly a liberal but a man with a set of nuts, who calls a spade a spade regardless of whose political game he might crap up. Therein lies the difference...Dobbs is a true journalist. He understands his duty is first to the public. He further understands that pursuing that duty...insures his continued career success...whether it be as a newscaster or a writer of books. For this reason Lou Dobbs will still be going strong long after Aaron Brown has been forgotten.

What Aaron Brown has made clear is that regardless of process there is no discourse. That in spite of numerous sources and obvious public interest he prefers either by design, because he is a moron or because it is easier, to sit at his desk with his eyes closed, his fingers in his ears yelling lalalalalala. The public isn't getting paid to do his job....he is...and as far as I....and it would appear about 10,000 other people are concerned, he ain't doing it. He isn't doing us a favor by reporting the news...we're doing him a favor by giving those who pay his salary license to use the airwaves upon which they ply their trade. Style of delivery does not invalidate that which is being delivered....and any true journalist knows this. Only a self important, sanctimonious ass would suggest people must first appeal to his particular brand of sensibilities before he'll listen to what they have to say....especially when it's his job to listen. The public doesn't serve Aaron...Aaron serves the public...and he best keep that in mind.

I'm curious...If Aaron were a waiter would he refuse to wait on a customer because he didn't care for the fact that the last table ordered the same thing?


RC

[papau]

52. Good Point - and we may die poor as you noted - but not everyone

is up to that possibility after being well off.

I try to put myself in Aaron's shoes, and remember that I was in my 20's when I told Jack Kevernland (CEO Pru) that he was wrong to ignore and screw the poor urban areas via non action in investment and via support for Pru deals or by having the Pru favor the corporation/screw the poor deals in the NJ legislature.

By the time I was in my 50's, tolerance for my making a comment seemed near zero, and/or I was not nearly as brave. The Reagan years made paid management very "brave" - smug even, and even taking courses on how to screw someone effectively, publicly, and then to fire so as to best control and motivate the remaining workforce - all while saying we are in a group effort that was going great except for disrupters. Hell - a Canadian ins operation in the US had a fellow - recently head of the US operation but now retiring -who when exposed for promoting a mistress, had her fired for submitting for reimbursement the motel bills, which he had then signed, because that was stealing money from the company. And the Board of Directors promoted him because he could sell into the Fortune 500.

I am just not sure there is as much wiggle room as there was in the past for a liberal.

[Sterling]

37. You are right 100%, trying to suck up to this ass is pathetic.

That is what we get for helping this amateur do his job? Get off your fat lazy ass Aaron and be a journalist.

People here act as though people like him are the gate keepers of truth and we should play their little games like Aaron’s "I only respect unique letters" BS.

The fact is no one should have to bring this to his attention and once it has been brought to his intention it is not our responsibility to kiss his ass until he thinks we are cool enough to do his job.

What a putz and shame on those who can't see through this and are falling all over themselves for this POS.

[OneTwentyoNine]

39. I agree,quit calling guys like Aaron Brown reporters or journalists..

The ass is neither or he'd be all over a story like voting fraud. Him and his ilk don't investigate shit,they just read copy off the teleprompter and keep a nice die job on the hair.

"Could have been an actor but I wound up here"
"I just have to look good don't have to be clear"


David

[In Truth We Trust]

49. The Creek Runneth Over...

with the truth. I enjoyed your post and really could not agree more.
I can't help but wonder what life in this country would be like if every transmit tower went offline for months and people wouldn't be subjected to such mindless blather and lowest common denominator thought speak control.

[RapidCreek]

58. Thanks John

You and me both. Welcome to DU!

RC

[stepnw1f]

9. Fuck CNN

Go to every discussion board and expose articles and stories covering the truth about the administration. We need to re-educate the masses out there. Do not argue with people. Just link and cut and paste snippets of info. See how long it takes for the info to spread. Thank god we have the internet.

[Puglover]

11. Aaron Brown

is an arrogant media whore. He gave Amy Goodman an interview during the invasion of Iraq and he could not have been more condescending.

[grasswire]

14. people like aaron brown...

....are terrified of being phased out of business, as the internet takes away more and more of their market share. The established press is losing its authority and control over the national conversation. That's why they increasingly "diss" netizens both organized and unorganized.

That said, I believe it WOULD be more impressive for people to write original paper letters. Five hundred paper letters would be an incredible statement. Paul Begala says that a hundred paper letters would turn slanted coverage around on a dime.

What does it take to write a paper letter? Just 37 cents and fifteen minutes.

[info being]

16. I listened to that....I agree

However, he did one thing right recently. After one of the Democratic Debates, he ranted about the fact that the White House is trying to stiffle the 9/11 investigation. I was proud of him for doing that.

[Cat Atomic]

32. I remember that interview. I was blown away by

Brown's arrogance. He really came off like a prick.

[Skittles]

12. WHAT A JUVENILE RESPONSE

PATHETIC

[Auntie Bush]

17. I'm bummed....I've always liked Aaron Brown.

Sorry he took that position...but he is the most liberal of all the nightly talking heads. Let's befriend him...not make him an enemy.

[jackstraw45]

18. Who cares about Aaron Brown or CNN?

They get something like a .8 rating. That's NOTHING.

I think the "news" networks get WAY too much credit here at DU.

Apart from folks here and in freeperland, MSNBC, Faux News, and CNN are virtually IGNORED by almost ALL of the country.

Their influence is zero to NONE in my opinion.

The internet is our tool to get out the truth and I think it's working.

[spanone]

19. Remember Aaron got his job BECAUSE of 9/11

[jansu]

20. I never read a form letter, why would He? Take the time to do the research

on the subject and send them the links, with a small clip of it. It is better to send it by snail mail, but you can do it by e-mail as long as it is personal.

Also, write to the management of ALL media outlets and let them know that unless they cover these issues and the lies of Bush and gang, that you will stop watching them, or buying their newspaper or magazines until they do. You will also stop buying products from their advertisers. And write their advertisers and tell them the same thing. Pass it on to all of your e-mail list and ask them to do the same and pass it on. We do have the power!

The Blacks used this by not riding on buses or buying from businesses. We used this against South Africa.

It's about the money! Take it away and they will change their ways!

[mikehiggins]

21. Brown batted the ball back into your court. What are you going to

do now?

I've replied to this on another site so I'll just paraphrase myself here, if you don't mind.

Media listens to the thousands of "cut and paste" messages from the right because they know that if they don't they are going to hear about it big time. They also know progressives are NOT organised like Pat Robertson's group or any of those. Progressive think tanks have much more important things to do than hold the CNN's and MSNBC's of the world to task. Some even think it is improper to try and hammer these outlets into reporting something the media doesn't want to deal with.

We are absolutely FINE with preaching to the choir, but when that doesn't work folks tend to stand around looking at each other, wondering WTF do we do now.

I would think a press conference blasting Brown for his condescending and dismissive reply might be worth considering. As I said elsewhere, I'm sure MSNBC and FOX would be happy to cover it. They are as loyal to their peers as your average shark, so there should be no problem.

Better have all your facts ready, though, and all your ducks in a row. Otherwise they will eat you up.

[PA Democrat]

24. Last Year Aaron Brown responded to my email

that I had sent him after he told Scott Ritter that no one would believe anything he said about WMD's. This was right after Ritter was accused of internet involvement with a minor.

I can't remember exactly what I said to Brown, but this was in the lead-up to the invasion of Iraq and the media was completely ignoring the voices of anyone (like Ritter) who said there was insufficient cause for war.

Aaron Brown responded to my email and accused me of taking my marching orders from an internet website. He specifically mentioned William Rivers Pitt. I hadn't yet heard of truthout.org and was really pissed that Brown thought that anyone who offers criticism is incapable of independent thought.

I responded to his email and he sent me ANOTHER email. I think Aaron Brown is a tad too sensitive to criticism.

Anyway, some good did come of the exchange, because I googled William Rivers Pitt and found his great website.

[Sterling]

41. He is and was just looking for an excuse to dismiss you

And anyone who might think something he:
A. disagrees with
B. is too lazy to report on

Maybe it makes him feel better to respond to serious issues this way. I can't say in an internet driven newsworld it will help his credibilty (lol) much.

Basically he was saying "na na na I'm not listening to you". What a childish ass.

[WilliamPitt]

25. He's a snide little wretch

"I won't even pay attention to what you guys want or say or think or do."

Typical.

I wrote an open letter to him last year via truthout, asking him to cover the fact that there were no WMDs in Iraq. He called my home on two separate occasions that night to scold me. It was entertaining.

[PA Democrat]

26. Oh that's too funny

So in his paranoia, he thinks that somehow YOU were behind my email.

Oh....my.....God! The idea that the masses of the unwashed are capable of independent thought must terrify him.

[Logansquare]

33. That boy should stop playing with his Blackberry and

start reading up on the issues. What a Heather!

[Generic Other]

46. Wasn't he drunk at the time?

I'm still waiting for his public apology to Scott Ritter and
Will Pitt. Any idea when he'll offer it?

[proud patriot]

47. Me too

All of us who wrote him before the war and
were dissed deserve an apology .

[TheWebHead]

31. Good for Aaron Brown

what an obnoxious campaign... Sounds about as annoyed I was with the Mydoom virus when it first hit and I was getting literally 1,000+ e-mails a day. If you got something to say, write it, don't paste it.

[Sterling]

40. Do you have any idea what BBV is?

I find the whole semantics argument over what form we should deliver our correspondence with a "journalist" to alert him to an important issue rather pointless and for the weak of mind that can't see the core issue.

Really we are talking about our VOTES here. Who gives a rat’s ass how he was alerted to it? The point is now he knows about it, what is he gonna do? Apparently nothing as he sees his duty to run a popularity contest with his audience opposed to the old fashioned methods of reporting. :eyes:

I mean the guy received 5000 emails alerting him to a story. It’s not a fucking essay contest. What a dick.

[rasputin1952]

34. I just went to the CNN site...

hit "Contact Us" at the bottom, and went to Aaron Brown's e-mail.

He asked for passion, and I gave him some.

In essence, I asked why he thought that Martha Stewart, Kobe Bryant and Michael Jackson were more important than the possible destruction of the entire voter base. Isn't that what a Democratic Republic is based on, the votes of the people for a representative government?

I told him to get off his arrogant dead butt and start reporting REAL news, and skip the sanctimonious crap.

That's it in a nutshell, so write the bum and express yourselves. I am not a 'lemming', repukes are lockstep lemmings. He wants passion, give it to him!

O8)

[RapidCreek]

36. Composing a letter to send tommorow.

Passion he'll get.

RC

[rasputin1952]

44. LOL...I think the same way!

He wants passion...let's give it to him.

O8)

[OneTwentyoNine]

38. Yeah Hell Aaron...don't waste your time on silly voting fraud....

Much,much more important stuff like Jacksons tits and Scott Peterson--DID HE OR DIDN'T HE??


OK,maybe the mailing to him was over the top but shit Aaron,don't you think VOTING FRAUD and rigged machines should warrant a full investigation??

Oh,I see...you don't care because you and CNN are fucking lackey's and boot licker's for the Bush administration.

David

[Zomby Woof]

42. a kick because Desertrose kicks ass

:loveya:

[TacticalPeek]

43. Seems to me that complaining to a newsreader

is like complaining to the mailman when a letter took weeks to arrive.

I assume it is the producers and execs who make the decisions, and the guys who hire and fire and sign checks. Brown may have some token lee-way, but if the suit he reports to wanted BBV investigated and covered big-time, it would happen in a New York minute. Same if the suit wants it soft-pedaled or buried, Brown does that, or his replacement does. That's the way it happens everywhere else.

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

45. send this to amy goodman

she's been tearing brown apart for a few years now-her interview with him was priceless

[TiredTexan]

50. Here's my e-mail to Aaron Brown, for what it's worth...........

I was astonished and angered to read Aaron Brown's childish and unprofessional response to Media for Democracy, who has done an admirable job of pointing out the serious problems of electronic voting. In response to a request for an open dialogue on voting issues, Mr. Brown contemptuously stated: "because this cut and paste campaign has annoyed the hell out of me for a week I won't even pay attention to what you guys want or say or think or do. There is no skill and no passion in cutting and pasting. It's just what lemmings do. I can't begin to tell you how offended I am by it all. You may feel free to pass this along to the rest of the group."

Aside from the contempt for his audience that this statement reveals, Mr. Brown also shows contempt for the issues that we, the people, are passionately attempting to bring to the media's attention. Most of us work all day, sometimes at two jobs, and therefore use the quickest means at our disposal to ask the media to simply do its job, the one we simply can’t do because we’re too busy doing our jobs. And, in case you have forgotten, let me remind you that it is your job to inform us of the issues, NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND.

Long ago, CNN should have investigated this issue, done its homework and reported, ad nauseum, on the many, many electronic voting issues. You should have probed the problems with secret codes, noted the connections between the powerful and the voting machine vendors, highlighted the lack of security and the ease of hacking, and reported ceaselessly on these issues until everyone was aware of them. But you didn't - not until the grassroots efforts of the Media for Democracy and Bev Harris permeated the mainstream consciousness through the internet. Then, and only then, did you guys slowly begin to play catch up. You have no standing now to complain that we, your busy and very concerned audience, used a shorthand method in attempting to wake the sleeping giant of the U.S. media.

Aside from this, Mr. Brown revealed that he is not a very good journalist. Lemmings do not mindlessly follow each other off the cliff (or cut and paste on the computer, for that matter). The lemming urban legend has been around since a "documentary" was produced for TV in the 1960's. The film makers forced lemmings off a cliff solely for the purpose of making their documentary more shocking and interesting. It worked. Many innocent lemmings died to create this myth. Sadly, Mr. Brown's comments show that the media hasn't progressed much since that time. Actually, CNN’s reporting before the Iraq war comes to mind when I think of lemmings.

So, please stop insulting your busy viewers, do your job and we won't have to spend so much time online at night to find out the real news. Nor will we be forced to send you 10,000 emails to get you to wake up to an issue. You will already know of it and will be reporting it to us.

So here it is, 1:15 a.m. in Ft. Worth, Texas. I am online after working a 12 hour day as an attorney for an insurance company, trying to do my duty as an American citizen by reading the news, and keeping abreast of the issues so I can cast informed votes and be a good citizen. And for this effort, Mr. Brown insults me for simply trying to alert CNN so it would do its job.

Mr. Brown, you owe me an apology because I was one of the people who sent you this form e-mail. And I wouldn't have had to send it if you had been doing your job properly in the first place.

MY Name
Another angry, sad, former Aaron Brown fan

[rasputin1952]

54. Very articualte and precise...

and, (chuckle), I can see the lawyer in that letter. You get paid by the word right? :P

I am impressed.

O8)

[TiredTexan]

57. I wish. I'd be alot richer

for sure. Chuckle, chuckle.

[Nlighten1]

55. Excellent letter!

Welcome to DU!

[GregD]

51. The most interesting point of all this

is that they did cover us on March 1, featuring Bev Harris, Avi Rubin and others.

Video compliments of Wonk:
http://www.verifiedvoting.org/audiovideo/

We are not at all unhappy with CNN's recent coverage.

Took a bit TOO DANG long to get there, but hey, some stories don't show up at all these days. Grumble...

[Hekate]

53. Lou Dobbs was on it

I caught his re-run very late, and was so pleased. I didn't know you were hassling Aaron Brown and he was refusing to play, so it was unexpected and gratifying to see Lou working this issue. As for Aaron, there's no way to know if he also gets hot under the collar at e-mail campaigns from the RW -- but it's a legitimate question to ask him! Ask him how he'd like to be approached and see if he has anything to say. Or maybe he likes the sensation of lemmings falling all over his head and shoulders.

It's time to write another little thank you note to Lou Dobbs for doing the right thing. I already wrote and told him he's a mensch for covering the mistreatment of active duty and wounded troops, and ditto the Exporting of America. I added that he's about the only reason I have to ever watch CNN.

It's like raising kids; you know: "Catch them doing something right, and praise them." Makes a nice change for me, considering how many times I've phoned my local tv-news comment line and complained that their anchorwoman is once again describing our local Planned Parenthood full-service clinic as an "abortion clinic."

Good luck and keep at it!

Hekate