Other Columns by Cliff Kincaid
Cliff Kincaid Bio

Printer-Friendly Version

Page 2 of 2

Incredibly, the major media are supporting a friend-of-the-court brief submitted on behalf of the ACLU in demanding that the Defense Department release the photographs and videos depicting alleged prisoner abuse and torture. The news and press organizations endorsing the brief are The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, CBS Broadcasting, NBC Universal, The Hearst Corporation, The New York Times Co., the American Society of Newspaper Editors, Advance Publications, the E.W. Scripps Company, Investigative Reporters and Editors, the Newspaper Guild and the Tribune Company.

The press groups insist it's all about making sure the Department of Defense obeys the Freedom of Information Act in making the material available. But they have to know the material will be exploited by our enemy and cause more Americans to die. Do they even care?

The 11-page brief argues that the Pentagon's "fear of violent public reaction to the disclosure" is not enough to keep the material out of the hands of Al Qaeda and Al-Jazeera.

How can the U.S. win a war when our own media seem so willing to provide propaganda for the other side? Those working side-by-side with the ACLU are some of our biggest media companies.

General Myers says in his declaration in the case that the images, if released, "will increase the likelihood of violence against United States interests, personnel, and citizens worldwide." Based on the Newsweek example, one has to conclude that he has a valid point.

In fact, Myers cites the Newsweek story, noting that, in addition to the 17 deaths in Afghanistan, it sparked anti-U.S. demonstrations in the Palestinian territories, Egypt, Sudan, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Indonesia.

"Insurgents in Afghanistan have a relatively sophisticated and aggressive information operations campaign," Myers notes. In Iraq, "The insurgents will use any means necessary to incite violence and, specifically, will focus on perceived U.S. or Coalition mistreatment of Iraqi civilians and detainees as a propaganda and recruiting tool to aid their cause."

Compare the enemy's propaganda machine to that of the Pentagon, which can't even hold on to the Washington Post as a sponsor of an event honoring the victims of 9/11 and U.S. military personnel. The Post's pull-out from the Freedom Walk demonstrates how the management of a major paper can be intimidated by the far-left "anti-war" movement, including its own staff reporters, when the issue was simply remembering the victims of 9/11 and supporting our military men and women. When the paper pulled out, the Post itself noted that the sponsorship of the event had been "criticized by members of the antiwar movement and by journalists in the paper's own newsroom..." A "peace activist" was quoted as saying he welcomed the Post's "change of heart." Al Qaeda must have been pleased as well. Patriotic Americans should be outraged.

------------

Cliff Kincaid is Editor of the AIM Report.

--------------------

Note -- The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions, views, and/or philosophy of GOPUSA.

>> Back -- Page 1 2