It depends on what the meaning of ‘independent media’ is

December 1, 2005

At today’s White House press briefing, there were a number of questions about recent reports on the U.S. military secretly paying Iraqi newspapers to publish “articles” written by Americans to bolster our image and convince Iraqis that the war and occupation are worthwhile.

McClellan referred most of the questions to the Pentagon — though he acknowledged that the White House is “very concerned about the reports that we have seen” — but there was one exchange that stood out.

Q: At a time when the President talks about trying to build institutions, free institutions in Iraq, does even the level of reporting on this so far undercut that message?

McClellan: Well, the United States is a leader when it comes to promoting and advocating a free and independent media around the world, and we will continue to do so. We’ve made our views very clear when it comes to freedom of press.

I couldn’t agree more; the Bush White House has made its views “very clear when it comes to freedom of press.” In fact, they’ve made it abundantly clear what Bush thinks of a “free and independent media” when it comes to the American media, the WH press corps, the Iraqi media, Public Broadcasting, and American media overseas.

The Bush gang has made their views clear, but to describe this administration as “a leader” in promoting a free and independent media would be comical if it weren’t so sad.

Don’t forget their opinion of an independent arab press. One headquartered in, say Qatar.

  • McClellan: Well, the United States is a leader when it comes to promoting and advocating a free and independent media around the world, and we will continue to do so.We’ve made our views very clear when it comes to freedom of press.

    With this White House it is all about talking a good game. The reality of its actions and the world it occupies (no pun intended) mean nothing. This is not unique to the White House. I have seen it too often from university presidents. It is common to any mediocre institution lead by mediocre people and it has a long tradition in America. Think of the portrait of middle America painted by Sinclair Lewis in “Babbitt”. This may explain why it is so hard for people to see the obvious disconnect between the words and the world. It is a large part of our culture.

  • Kinf of makes one wonder about the past couple years’ claims of “all the good news” coming out of Iraq.

  • I bet they are “very concerned about those reports,” though irony escapes McFelon. I am truly saddened though that American media have been so emasculated and oddly diverted the past eight years or so. Thank Al`lah for the Internet!

  • Interesting blurb about this in USAToday online:

    In Baghdad on Thursday, a senior military spokesman, Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch, was asked whether he thought the program undercuts the credibility of either the American military or the new Iraqi news media. Lynch did not answer directly but quoted a senior al-Qaeda leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, as having told Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the main terrorist leader in Iraq, “Remember, half the battle is the battlefield of the media.”

    So, now we’ve got our own military officers quoting al Qaeda to defend their own actions. Not to mention a tacit admission that propaganda is a large part of the arsenal. Great. Just great.

  • from today’s NYTimes story from Schmitt and Cloud

    …..(A State Department spokesman said,) “This is a country where free media didn’t exist for decades, so they are learning. We think it’s important to assist them in that.”

    But if the nascent Iraqi news media are perceived by ordinary Iraqis to be a tool of American interests, that effort will be ruined, some lawmakers said.

    “How are people going to get information that’s reliable?” said Senator Richard G. Lugar, an Indiana Republican who heads the Foreign Relations Committee. “Who can they trust? If you are a devout Shiite or Sunni, and you suspect that the press has been bought, why, then you wouldn’t respect the press.”….

    thanks to Nitpicker
    http://nitpicker.blogspot.com/2005/12/lugar-gets-this-exactly-right.html

  • “the United States is a leader”

    They’re leading all right, but in the wrong direction.

    These people have a major definition issue with the word “free”. They seem to think it means “for sale to the highest bidder”.

    See the following thread at Kos to see an interesting discussion of our own “free press” in action:

    http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/12/1/17155/4222

    I think maybe we’re witnessing an extinction event in progress, where the small furry blogs take over from the dinosaurs who must consume huge piles of cash on a daily basis.

    The internet was an asteroid.

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