Posted on 03/31/2003 5:49:33 PM PST by Timesink
Veteran newsman Peter Arnett was axed by NBC yesterday accused of being a Saddam stooge. He told state-run Iraqi TV the conflict was not going to plan because of fierce resistance and said his Baghdad reports "help those who oppose war".
He joins the Mirror on the day it was revealed that 8,700 bombs have rained down on Iraq in 12 days, including 3,000 missiles over the weekend.
After his sacking, Pulitzer Prize winner Arnett said: "I report the truth of what is happening here in Baghdad and will not apologise for it. I have always admired your newspaper and am proud to be working for it."
The New Zealand-born journalist was vilified across the US for an interview in which he said: "The first war plan has failed because of Iraqi resistance. Now they are trying to write another war plan. Clearly, thewar planners misjudged the determination of the Iraqi forces. In my TV commentaries I'd tell the Americans about the Iraqi forces and their willingness to fight.
"President Bush says he is concerned about the Iraqi people. But if Iraqi people are dying in numbers, then American policy will be challenged very strongly."
Arnett, 68, added that there was growing opposition about the conduct of the war.
He said: "Our reports about civilian casualties here, about the resistance of the Iraqi forces, are going back to the US. It helps those who oppose the war when you challenge the policy."
On Sunday, NBC praised the reporter for risking his life to deliver news from Baghdad.
The station said of the Iraqi TV interview: "He answered their questions out of professional courtesy. He saw it as purely analysis."
But the furious White House said Arnett spoke from "a point of complete ignorance".
They day after backing him, NBC cut him loose.
Yesterday Arnett said on NBC: "I want to apologise to the American people. It was clearly a misjudgment talking to Iraqi TV.
"I'm not anti-war. I said what we all know about this war. But I've created a firestorm and for that I'm sorry."
Asked about his future, he joked: "There;s a small island in the South Pacific I'll try to swim to. I'll leave."
Arnett was one of the few TV journalists in Baghdad. He said: "The Iraqis let me stay because they see me as a fellow warrior. They know I might not agree with them. But I've got their respect."
The reporter, the first Western journalist to interview Osama bin Laden and the last to interview Saddam Hussein, was accused of peddling pro-Iraqi propaganda while covering the 1991 Gulf War.
But he gained much of his prominence for reporting the last conflict with Iraq for CNN.
His Pulitzer Prize came for reporting in Vietnam in 1966 for the Associated Press.
Ciar Byrne
Friday September 6, 2002
The Guardian
Sales of the Daily Mirror have slumped to a new low one year after September 11, the event that prompted editor Piers Morgan to turn his paper into a "serious" read.
Between March and August the Mirror's circulation dropped to an average of 2,114,666 copies, a 4.13% decline year on year.
It is the paper's lowest six-month figure to be recorded by the Audit Bureau of Circulations since the auditor was founded in 1931.
In comparison, the Sun increased its circulation by 0.08% over the same period to 3,506,773, while the Daily Star rose 14.46% to a six-month average of 691,777.
The slump is not as bad as it appears, according to the Mirror, which attributed the decline to its decision to axe bulk sales and reduce its direct marketing efforts.
"The Daily Mirror has again reinforced its reputation as the home of serious journalism, ensuring it continues to perform well ahead of target," the paper said in a statement today.
The Mirror added that when the effects of sampling and direct marketing were taken out of the equation, the decline was actually just 0.6%.
Morgan has repeatedly said that when the Sun, which currently sells for 10p in the London/Carlton region, goes back up to 20p, it will immediately lose readers.
But a spokeswoman for News International, the Sun's publisher, said the company was "delighted" with its latest circulation figures.
"We'll have to wait and see what happens. Pricing is all about getting people to try the product and it is working for us," he said.
"We've got a lot more experience of pricing than they [Trinity Mirror] have."
A bitter price war broke out between the tabloids earlier this year when the Mirror cut its cover price from 32p to 20p.
The Sun followed suit and soon went one better by slashing its price to 10p in the London/Carlton area.
The Mirror still sells for 20p in London and other parts of the country but has gone back up to 32p in its northern heartland.
Overall the price cuts have cost the Mirror £2.3m and the Sun £7m.
However, Rupert Murdoch, the owner of News International, has much deeper pockets than Trinity Mirror.
The Sun, Mirror and Star all increased their circulation since July.
This rise can be attributed to the start of the football season and coverage of the events in Soham.
The Sunday tabloids also increased their sales month on month, while declining year on year.
The People, from the same stable as the Mirror, recorded its highest circulation since January of 1,341,825 thanks to last month's relaunch, which introduced a standalone sports section.
However, the People's sales declined by 5.06% year on year.
BINGO!
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