Scrapbook: A media torn by Iraq

The Australian ^ | April 11 2003 | John Keegan

[knighthawk]

Coverage of the conflict has been confused and wilfully pessimistic, writes military historian John Keegan.

SADDAM Hussein's war plan, if he had one, must be reckoned one of the most inept designed. It made no use of the country's natural defences. All advantages the defence enjoyed were thrown away even before they could be used. Because the war has taken such a strange form, the media may be forgiven for their misinterpretation of how it has progressed.

Checks have been described as defeats, minor firefights as major battles. In truth, there has been almost no check to the onrush of the coalition, particularly the dramatic American advance to Baghdad; nor have there been any major battles. This has been a collapse, not a war.

Nevertheless, Air Marshal Brian Burridge, the British commander in the Gulf, has a point when he says the British media has lost the plot. He looks forward to a stage of peacemaking when the young journalists who have been embedded in the coalition units will use that experience to propagate a new military reality for the benefit of the public at home.

The older media generation, particularly those covering the war from comfortable television studios, has not covered itself with glory. Deeply infected with anti-war feeling and left-wing antipathy to the use of force as a means of doing good, it has once again sought to depict the achievements of the West's servicemen as a subject for disapproval.

The brave young American and British servicemen – and women – who have risked their lives to bring down Hussein have every reason to feel that there is something corrupt about their home-based media.

From The Daily Telegraph

[knighthawk]

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[Tacis]

My bet is that Saddam was all talk and never made any plans because he was paying the French and, especially, Chirac, very, very big bucks to keep us off his back. Look at it from his point of view. The first Bush wimped out and proved that he didn't have the stones to win. Willie was the world's foremost corrupt liar and wouldn't do anything decisive and risk his income and girls.

Saddam believed what Chirac told him; that he and Cretien would be able to persuade W. to focus everything through the UN where it would be sidetracked for many years. Saddam never in a million years thought that Bush would follow up. Saddam believed that he could use third parties to attack the US with terrorism and always duck behind the corrupt French and Canadians.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Nevertheless, Air Marshal Brian Burridge, the British commander in the Gulf, has a point when he says the British media has lost the plot. He looks forward to a stage of peacemaking when the young journalists who have been embedded in the coalition units will use that experience to propagate a new military reality for the benefit of the public at home.

GReg Kelly for ABC Anchor, he has gravitis (sp?)

OFFICIAL BUMP(TOPIC)LIST

[gunnedah]

The so called "Mainstream Media" is nothing but a bunch of leftist leaning liberals and are use to setting Americas Policy and agenda but they cannot control Bush.
The Democrats have jumped on board the "Hollywood" and so called Mainstream Media" team with their elbow rubbing and the Internet came along and exposed their a$$e$$. To hell with ABC,CBS,NBC,MSNBC,CNN,The BBC and the rest of the Liberal dope smoking idiots. Americans are becoming more savy because of the Internet and you cant brainwash them as easy.
"Goodnight Mrs. Calabash, Wherever you are"!

[TopQuark]

Amazing: he is celebrated as a great military historian, yet exemplifies how stupid one can become by being too narrowly focused:

This has been a collapse, not a war.

Patently wrong. A siege laid to a medieval city is an act of war practiced all too often. If the city gives up after a year, does that mean there was no war?

There was little firingfrom Iraqis --- too little to Keagan's taste, apparently. But this was --- and still is --- a war. It was just brilliantly executed by Rumsfeld & Co and our British and Australian friends --- that is what diminishes the amount of firing.

Time for this historian to retire: he no longer sees the forest for the trees.

[Grampa Dave]

I made the prediction that we will see the good/young embedded reporters advance quickly up the ranks of their news organizations. (Or they will leave them and go to Fox if they don't work for Fox!)

They will have made life long friendships with the brave Officers and men they were embedded with. As these officers get promoted and the embeds get promoted, we will see massive changes. If ABCNNBCBS and BBC don't change and promote these young embeds, they will be as irrelevant as the UN is.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Just found this terrific cartoon :

This is from the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin ---Ontario, California

Los Angeles Newspaper Group

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

See post #9!

[f.Christian]

The brave young American and British servicemen – and women – who have risked their lives to bring down Hussein have every reason to feel that there is something corrupt about their home-based media.

From The Daily Telegraph

[Grampa Dave]

Thanks for the great cartoon. Actually the words on the left panel are what I use to call the left wingers who were against the war and still against it.

http://lang.dailybulletin.com/opinions/cartoon/archive/0403/11/gordon450.gif

[Grampa Dave]

Ooops. I don't know what happened there.

[theophilusscribe]

Greg Kelly is a FoxNews reporter.

Greg Kelly, an Atlanta-based correspondent for the FOX News Channel (FNC), joined the network in November 2002. Most recently, Kelly served as a reporter for New York 1 News, where he covered New York City politics.

Unless there is another Greg Kelly?

[knighthawk]

The cartonist is so right. These people don't care if people are oppressed by anyone. But if the US has to wage a war to liberate the oppressed, they come to life.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

I think he is the son of a NY City Police Chief?

He was also a Marine flyer!