Tiger Al 0 Posted November 7, 2003 Share Posted November 7, 2003 Are the media ignoring the good news in Iraq? From pundits to White House officials, that's what many critics are saying. According to George W. Bush (10/6/03), "We're making good progress in Iraq. Sometimes it's hard to tell it when you listen to the filter." While these complaints have sparked extensive discussion and debate in the media, an examination of coverage finds very little substance to this critique of media treatment of Iraq. The pro-occupation critics claim that there's not enough coverage of the rebuilt schools, for example, or the fact that hospitals in Iraq are open. Congressmember Jim Marshall (D.-Ga.) was perhaps the most blunt of them all, alleging in an opinion piece for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (9/22/03) that the media's "falsely bleak picture weakens our national resolve, discourages Iraqi cooperation and emboldens our enemy." Marshall concluded by lamenting "the harm done by our media. I'm afraid it is killing our troops." LINK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrueTiger 0 Posted November 7, 2003 Share Posted November 7, 2003 I was wondering about that 2. All I hear is americans being killed over there. I havnet heard anything good in a while. WARR EAGLE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AURainman 6 Posted November 7, 2003 Share Posted November 7, 2003 I wouldn't doubt it. But, I don't consider it an ill-intended filter. It's the nature of reporting. Reporters need stories, and bad news is the best kind of story to report. That's why you now see local news stations focusing on uplifting stories for the community. People get tired of hearing bad, bad, bad all the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenny AU-92 0 Posted November 7, 2003 Share Posted November 7, 2003 A good example of the media filter is in this week's Newsweek, in the letters to the editor section. In their issue about "Bush's $87B Mess", they accuse Bechtel of substandard work in finishing schools - but they got it wrong. A BEchtel executive wrote Newsweek with a clarification of the article's falsehoods. The schools they referred to as substandard were actually not rebuilt by Bechtel - one was, but it had been subbed out to an Iraqi company, and Bechtel was withholding payment until the job was completed. The story alleged that the power plants weren't working yet, when actually, Bechtel already had one back up and running to the exact same output that it was providing prior to the war, and considering the damage that Sadaam's regime had done to the infrastructure thru neglect, that was in and of itself a miracle. The article claimed that Bechtel had not rebuilt one of the major ports, when in actuality, the port was and continues to be open and is a major pipeline for humanitarian aid. But of course, Newsweek wouldn't report any of that - as someone said, bad news sells. If my subscription weren't free, I would cancel it. It really pisses me off. ONCE AGAIN - as I have quoted before, for the first time in 30 years, there are no political prisoners in Iraqi jails, no rape rooms, no more mass graves being dug, no more random executions of people and their families for speaking their minds - life in Iraq is so much better than before - just depends on who you ask, I guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tigermike 3,052 Posted November 8, 2003 Share Posted November 8, 2003 I heard that the daily homicide rate in both NY & Los Angeles is higher than the numbers of soldiers being killed in Iraq. My point for giving that tidbit, is to also say that the NYTimes & Los Angeles Times are the worst. I would like it if no soldiers were killed, but,,,,,,,, but I don't know what. But to get back to your question, yes I do. But what do you expect, most media outlets newspaper, radio, TV thrive on bad news. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiger Al 0 Posted November 8, 2003 Author Share Posted November 8, 2003 The story alleged that the power plants weren't working yet, when actually, Bechtel already had one back up and running to the exact same output that it was providing prior to the war, and considering the damage that Sadaam's regime had done to the infrastructure thru neglect, that was in and of itself a miracle. Jenny, I'm not trying to sound like a fan of Saddam Hussein, but, in all fairness, during the first Gulf War our bombers inflicted massive damage to Iraq's electrical grids and infrastructure. Then for the following ten years they have been under tremendous economic sanctions. Saying that a power plant is back to pre-war output isn't saying much if the plant was only supplying 30% of its' potential beforehand. Read this article for some insight to the Iraqi sanctions and their effect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DKW 86 7,440 Posted November 8, 2003 Share Posted November 8, 2003 Maybe the soldiers should pay the govt for sending them OUT of harm's way. I mean some of these guys may be pulling duty in Washington DC and DC has a much higher murder rate than over in Iraq. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tigermike 3,052 Posted November 8, 2003 Share Posted November 8, 2003 Try this. http://www.cnsnews.com/cartoon/NOWAKArchiv...003100726AM.asp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDM4AU 336 Posted November 8, 2003 Share Posted November 8, 2003 This is fitting as well... Cartoon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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