Two from 'NYT' Threatened With Loss of Embed Over Images from Iraq

[RamboLiberal]

http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003540414

The intimate portrayal of a sergeant's death during Army efforts to clear a Baghdad neighborhood has caused friction between the military and The New York Times, while sparking larger questions about war coverage and media-military relations.

In a statement tonight, the Times denied a report that two of its journalists had lost their embedded status with the military in Iraq, but confirmed a serious dispute.

But the Houston Chronicle had reported that the two journalists working on the Times' story were apparently threatened with expulsion from their embed status — reporting from within the Army unit — a move that puzzled military reporters who have worked in Iraq.

Press advocates were concerned about distrust between military leaders and the media, and other observers noted the power of the video that accompanied the story, capturing the day's mix of confusion, fear and heroics.

The story released in Monday editions followed Staff Sgt. Hector Leija and his platoon on Haifa Street in Baghdad, part of a joint American-Iraqi effort on Jan. 24 to clear out militia fighters. Leija was shot in the head — possibly by a sniper, perhaps accidentally by soldiers in the street.

[IndianaGreen]

1. Our journalists should not embed with the military at all!

A practice begun in Vietnam and perfected during the Gulf War. It has a negative impact on a journalist's impartiality.