Is Newsweek Dead?

[NightOwwl]

Will the Bush Mafia succeed in destroying one of the last sources of (somewhat) unbiased media? Or have they themselves lost enough credibility by now that this attack will backfire on them?

I've been sickened by what I've read today. Newsweek has already backpedaled on their story. How low must we sink before people realize America has become the dictatorship that George Bush so famously declared, "would be a heck of a lot easier, just so long as I'm the dictator."

[The Minus World]

1. Not Necessarily a Bastion of Progressive Politics.

Newsweek's move was nothing more than a pragmatic attempt to curb potential blowback. It's terribly apparent that the "statement-->negative response-->hasty retraction" cycle of events is one married less to truthful reporting than to mending any slight crack in the giant dam of rhetoric espoused by this administration.

Many "facts" are widely reported on the faith of insider sources; especially with sensitive intelligence matters, it seems nearly impossible for a reporter to obtain independent verification of every single one of his or her sources' statements.

When faced with an opportunity to stand by the practice of honest journalism, Newsweek chooses the path of appeasement.

Imagine if our media acted with similar haste to retract their faith-based claims of "WMD stockpiles in Iraq" - which relied on similarly faulty intelligence. Maybe we could have spared 100,000+ lives.

In our sphere of nationalistic media sources, though, our priorities are skewed in order to fit the larger agenda. Suddenly, verifiable lies about motives to bring this country into war are not retracted; but news about some half-witted military officer giving the Koran a swirlie is worthy of being stricken from the records, and profusely apologized for.

[NightOwwl]

2. Thanks for putting it into perspective.

They did have a choice, after all, and they chose the easy way out.

As someone said (one of the right-wing shills - they are all the same to me,) "Newsweek has blood on it's hands." Ironic, isn't it. If it weren't for Bush this would all be moot. But in reality, Bush is the one with blood up to his neck. And no one in the media will ever have the guts to point that out.

[annabanana]

5. not "faulty", FALSE

Calling the intelligence 'faulty' gives the manipulators a pass.

[The Minus World]

12. Correction noted.

"FALSE". Sometimes my diplomatic urges get the best of me.

[LSdemocrat]

3. I barely pay attention to any US media source

I generally get my news from the Guardian (UK), the BBC, and to a lesser extent the New York Times.

[KharmaTrain]

4. They Got Skunked

The real problem is we get precious little out of Iraq that can be verified openly and honestly by real journalists. This place is way to dangerous for even the most intrepid to operate. Foreign journalists are walking targets in that country by all sides (including the U.S. military...who knows that keeping the journalists hunkered down prevents them from writing bad stories).

Newsweak got bit by a single source (whatever happened to verify?) again...took the word from an Iraqi source (still un-named) who might have provided some good poop in the past to set this magazine up and then lowered the boom on them. While this story is still fresh, I wouldn't be surprised if we learn that this "source" was within the U.S. military and this phony story was planted to purposely create more hatred toward the American and foreign press around the region.

Unfortunately, most people in this country won't hear much about this story...and there'll be plenty who will think the desecration of the Koran is a good thing...they won't see a thing wrong if this story was true and a pity if it wasn't. Few others will connect this to a similar outrage in their faith...unless it were pissing on the Virgin Mary or someone claiming Jesus was a woman or a black.

The basic reporting of this invasion/occupation is a disgrace to journalism as most of what we see/read are either dictated by the Pentagon or controlled by it. There's plundering going on, and this regime doesn't want anyone close to that action...and will gladly use the barrel of the gun to prevent that story from getting out.

[Disturbed]

6. How did Newsweek say that several Koran books were flushed..

down various toilets? Did the people rip the pages out and flush them? I read that the books were flushed but cannot imagine any toilet that would flush a book. This supposedly happened at Gitmo, right?

[KharmaTrain]

9. We Don't Know...That's The Real Issue

The things that leak out are ominous. Since this regime avoids to apply the Geneva convention to this facility, no one knows what's really going on inside.

While I'm very suspect of the military and there's plenty of evidence to point to torture and other forms of "psy-ops" that most would consider to be inhumane treatment, there's also another side to this coin. That blanket of secrecy also makes it possible for extremists on the other side to make up their own story, spread it and there's no way to deny it's not true.

While corporate media has forgotten about Abu Grahb, many in the Moslem world haven't. Any story...be it possible or not, be it true or not, can and will be used to vilify Americans.

To your question, I have no idea as to the specifics of destroying a Koran and flushing it. I would assume it's not a hardbound copy, but maybe pocket ones...just like pocket bibles...or just pages ripped out and then flushed.

[Karenina]

7. This may interest you.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x1785994

[mopaul]

8. it's a C-SPAN question coming right up...

the newsweek story

[mmonk]

10. Journalism is dead

Look at what the party (republican fascist) is doing to NPR. To be honest, America is the closest to death as I've seen it.

[triguy46]

11. It worked with Rather

now with Newsweek. What is scary is the level of sophistication and highest level clearances needed for this kind of stuff. If the botched Watergate break in was cleared by the oval office, theres no reason to think that a fraud so open, so public, so intricate could start anywhere else.