Irresponsible Media
Over at Real Clear Politics, Lieutenant Colonel John M. Kanaly writes of the media's disinterest in the positive things happening in Iraq:
The silence was deafening and the seats were empty. The western press was nowhere to be found. The location was Baghdad and the event was a February 10th, 2006 press conference announcing the final verification of December's election results. Although the final allocation of parliamentary seats did not change from last month's tentative reports, the conference was nonetheless significant for American and Iraqi history. What was equally significant was the absence of members of the western press.
As Lt. Kanaly writes in the next paragraph, imagine if the press conference were about mistreatment of detained terrorists, widespread voter fraud, or the like. Why, the place would have been full to overflowing. Lt. Kanaly writes later in the piece:
The true significance of this announcement is the underlying theme which the anti-war crowd refuses to recognize: the war has been successful and there is verifiable progress within the country of Iraq. Not only did we defeat a murderous despot, we have gained an ally in the war against terrorism. Just three short years ago, these same people were being terrorized by a vicious regime whose primary responsibility was supposed to be to protect its own citizens. After being victims of this brutal state, free Iraqis are now fighting their former oppressors who consist of remnants of the Ba'ath Party and the foreign terrorists who have taken it upon themselves to determine what is best for the Iraqi people.
Hey, those kinds of things are boring to the American media. Who wants to report good news about America's efforts in Iraq? Never mind that these are historic times for the Iraqi people. They want to see some bloodshed and violence!
True, there are peaks and valleys in the number of attacks. What is not reported when these supposed surges take place is the failure of most of the attacks. The bombings and shootings have not adversely affected operations, they have not disrupted our logistics, nor have they resulted in the enemy gaining one inch of territory. More importantly, they have not hindered the desire of the Iraqis to continue on with everyday life, despite the attempts of the terrorists to target innocent civilians. Yet, the intensity and constant reporting of every negative occurrence in Baghdad would lead one to believe that we have walked into the shadow of death from which there is no return.
Apparently, that's exactly what the Left wants. Wouldn't surprise me at all to see some of the kooks who blog at cesspools like Daily Kos and Democratic Underground out their beside their buddies shouting "Death to America!"
An example of the failure to report on the importance of this success was demonstrated at the conclusion of the press conference. Several hours later, the only related news on CNN International were reports of two bombings in Iraq and the all important notice from Cindi Sheehan that she will not run for the Senate and send Diane Feinstein into retirement.
At a time when American troops deserve a good headline in the major newspapers or a positive top-of-the-hour news flash on the network stations, the press and the left instead continue to focus on more mundane topics of discussion. This is the beginning of the most pivotal year in this war, and once again, the mainstream media finds itself on the wrong side of history.
The best line there is "At a time when American troops deserve a good headline..." They sure do. What a shot in the arm that would be for them, to see the major newspapers in their country trumpeting their successes and giving them the recognition they deserve. What a morale booster that would be! Of course, the Left won't allow that to happen because they don't believe our military heroes are heroes at all. Their heroes are people like Cindy Sheehan, Hugo Chavez, and Ramsey Clark.
The silence was deafening and the seats were empty. The western press was nowhere to be found. The location was Baghdad and the event was a February 10th, 2006 press conference announcing the final verification of December's election results. Although the final allocation of parliamentary seats did not change from last month's tentative reports, the conference was nonetheless significant for American and Iraqi history. What was equally significant was the absence of members of the western press.
As Lt. Kanaly writes in the next paragraph, imagine if the press conference were about mistreatment of detained terrorists, widespread voter fraud, or the like. Why, the place would have been full to overflowing. Lt. Kanaly writes later in the piece:
The true significance of this announcement is the underlying theme which the anti-war crowd refuses to recognize: the war has been successful and there is verifiable progress within the country of Iraq. Not only did we defeat a murderous despot, we have gained an ally in the war against terrorism. Just three short years ago, these same people were being terrorized by a vicious regime whose primary responsibility was supposed to be to protect its own citizens. After being victims of this brutal state, free Iraqis are now fighting their former oppressors who consist of remnants of the Ba'ath Party and the foreign terrorists who have taken it upon themselves to determine what is best for the Iraqi people.
Hey, those kinds of things are boring to the American media. Who wants to report good news about America's efforts in Iraq? Never mind that these are historic times for the Iraqi people. They want to see some bloodshed and violence!
True, there are peaks and valleys in the number of attacks. What is not reported when these supposed surges take place is the failure of most of the attacks. The bombings and shootings have not adversely affected operations, they have not disrupted our logistics, nor have they resulted in the enemy gaining one inch of territory. More importantly, they have not hindered the desire of the Iraqis to continue on with everyday life, despite the attempts of the terrorists to target innocent civilians. Yet, the intensity and constant reporting of every negative occurrence in Baghdad would lead one to believe that we have walked into the shadow of death from which there is no return.
Apparently, that's exactly what the Left wants. Wouldn't surprise me at all to see some of the kooks who blog at cesspools like Daily Kos and Democratic Underground out their beside their buddies shouting "Death to America!"
An example of the failure to report on the importance of this success was demonstrated at the conclusion of the press conference. Several hours later, the only related news on CNN International were reports of two bombings in Iraq and the all important notice from Cindi Sheehan that she will not run for the Senate and send Diane Feinstein into retirement.
At a time when American troops deserve a good headline in the major newspapers or a positive top-of-the-hour news flash on the network stations, the press and the left instead continue to focus on more mundane topics of discussion. This is the beginning of the most pivotal year in this war, and once again, the mainstream media finds itself on the wrong side of history.
The best line there is "At a time when American troops deserve a good headline..." They sure do. What a shot in the arm that would be for them, to see the major newspapers in their country trumpeting their successes and giving them the recognition they deserve. What a morale booster that would be! Of course, the Left won't allow that to happen because they don't believe our military heroes are heroes at all. Their heroes are people like Cindy Sheehan, Hugo Chavez, and Ramsey Clark.
posted by Jennifer at 2:03 AM
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