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February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
Feb. 4, 2005
/ 25 Shevat, 5765
The Toy Story: How the media is creating — or, rather, re-creating — history
By
Jack Kelly
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
History repeats itself, Karl Marx said, "first as tragedy, second as farce."
In the days immediately following Iraq's historic election, two videotapes
from "insurgent" groups were distributed to the news media. One purported
to show an American soldier being held hostage. The second purported to
show that a British C-130 transport aircraft, which crashed on election day,
had been shot down by a surface to air missile.
The "American soldier" was Cody, a G.I. Joe action figure. This is obvious
from the picture, but the Associated Press and CNN bit hard.
The cause of the C-130 crash is still being investigated. But experts at
Janes Defence Weekly have doubts about the "insurgent's" claims.
"The missile footage has just been grafted onto the front," said editor
Peter Felstead. "And it looks like a surface to surface missile to me."
Other experts note the wreckage footage was shot in daylight, while the
C-130 crashed just before nightfall. It is highly improbable "insurgents"
could have been on the scene before the sun set, and there were British
soldiers all around the next morning.
Media outlets that were quick to report the insurgents' claims had
little to say about the hoaxes. Nor did they speculate on what the hoaxes
might mean.
Last Sunday's elections demonstrated the massive support of the Iraqi people
for democracy, and the relative impotence of the "insurgents." The "river
of blood" they promised was barely a trickle.
Eight suicide bombers killed 36 Iraqis besides themselves. Of these, seven
were foreigners (six Saudis and a Sudanese). The only Iraqi was a child
suffering from Down's Syndrome (he had the intellect of a four-year-old).
That is, as the Iraqi writer Nibras Kazimi put it, "eight against eight
million." And on what basis, one might ask, do the media call seven foreign
terrorists "insurgents?"
The terrorists had to do something to revive their plummeting prestige.
That they resorted to clumsy frauds is not a sign of strength.
"The captured toy story could be pretty significant," said the web logger
John Hinderaker (Power Line). "The terrorists need, more than anything
else, to be seen as awesome, terrible figures. If they stop inspiring fear,
they are finished. So the one thing they cannot stand is ridicule...Their
pathetic effort to pass a doll off as a captured American soldier will
(make) them laughingstocks throughout the Arab world."
It's also interesting that the terrorists returned to the news media to
recover lost momentum. Journalists who fell for these hoaxes may merely be
idiots, and their silence about the implications of the hoaxes may simply be
the by product of embarrassment. But web logger Shannon Love (Chicago Boyz)
wonders:
"Why were the major media so quick to disseminate pictures of an action
figure as a genuine hostage photo?" More to the point, why are major media
so quick to disseminate anything that a terrorist group, or purported
terrorist group, releases? For the terrorist, it is like being given
millions of dollars in free advertising."
The major media have from the beginning exaggerated the strength and
popularity of those they mislabel "insurgents," to the disgust of American
soldiers.
"I'm tired of hearing the crap, the whole, well 'We are barely hanging on,
we're losing, the insurgency is growing,'" Marine Sgt. Kevin Lewis told Dan
Rather, in Iraq for the election. "It's just a small amount of people out
there causing the problems. It's a small number, and we're killing them."
The scandalous remarks of Eason Jordan, CNN's top news executive, last week
at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland (where Europe's elite goes
once a year to sneer at the United States), and the failure of the major
media to report them suggest the distortions are deliberate.
Jordan told a panel that the U.S. military had killed a dozen journalists in
Iraq, and that they had been deliberately targeted. When challenged, Jordan
could provide no evidence to support the charge, and subsequently lied about
having made it, though the record shows he had made a similar charge a few
months before, and also earlier had falsely accused the Israeli military of
targeting journalists.
Jordan's slander has created a firestorm in the blogosphere, but has yet to
be mentioned in the "mainstream" media. Gee, I wonder why not.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in Washington and the media consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Jack Kelly, a former Marine and Green Beret, was a
deputy assistant secretary of the Air Force in the Reagan
administration. Comment by clicking here.
Jack Kelly Archives
© 2005, Jack Kelly
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