Mainstream media (MSM) Ignores History in Baghdad

[Montgomery Burns]

Real Clear Politics commentary by Lieutenant Colonel John M. Kanaley:

The silence was deafening and the seats were empty. The western press was nowhere to be found. The location was Baghdad and the event was a February 10th, 2006 press conference announcing the final verification of December's election results. Although the final allocation of parliamentary seats did not change from last month's tentative reports, the conference was nonetheless significant for American and Iraqi history. What was equally significant was the absence of members of the western press.

Perhaps the Lamestream media is still diverting all their resources to finding proof that Bush--Horror of Horrors!--might've missed a couple of days of TANG duty 33 years ago...

...or learning who the President was on Christmas Eve 1968--when John Kerry tells them fanciful Walter Mitty-like tales of President Nixon sending him on an undercover mission in Cambodia, along with a "special" hat.

If the pre-release of the topics to be discussed included reports of widespread voter fraud, complaints by detained terrorists of maltreatment, or a sudden clamoring for the return of the deadly former dictator, certainly, the major news networks and the print media would have found time to attend. Of course, their reports would have consisted of their own perceived failure of western style elections in a part of the world that they deem to be unprepared for democracy. Since they were unable to report a "disastrous" event of this war, apparently, their budgets did not allow for attendance in Baghdad.

I have it on good source that CBS News spent most of their budget searching for "Lucy Ramirez" of Rathergate infamy.

The true significance of this announcement is the underlying theme which the anti-war crowd refuses to recognize: the war has been successful and there is verifiable progress within the country of Iraq. Not only did we defeat a murderous despot, we have gained an ally in the war against terrorism. Just three short years ago, these same people were being terrorized by a vicious regime whose primary responsibility was supposed to be to protect its own citizens. After being victims of this brutal state, free Iraqis are now fighting their former oppressors who consist of remnants of the Ba'ath Party and the foreign terrorists who have taken it upon themselves to determine what is best for the Iraqi people.

The Lieutenant Colonel is using logic...unlikely to be a liberal.

...The press never hesitates to report on the so-called surges of attacks in Iraq. Logically speaking,...

Logically Speaking...definitely not a liberal.

...if there is a surge at any given point, then there must have been a previous decrease in attacks as well, yet, that is never reported. True, there are peaks and valleys in the number of attacks. What is not reported when these supposed surges take place is the failure of most of the attacks. The bombings and shootings have not adversely affected operations, they have not disrupted our logistics, nor have they resulted in the enemy gaining one inch of territory. More importantly, they have not hindered the desire of the Iraqis to continue on with everyday life, despite the attempts of the terrorists to target innocent civilians. Yet, the intensity and constant reporting of every negative occurrence in Baghdad would lead one to believe that we have walked into the shadow of death from which there is no return.

The MSM is being less than honest? All those Iraqi bloggers aren't undercover CIA neocons?

Doesn't writing a constitution and having 3 free elections in 33 months = Vietnam Quagmire?

An example of the failure to report on the importance of this success was demonstrated at the conclusion of the press conference. Several hours later, the only related news on CNN International were reports of two bombings in Iraq and the all important notice from Cindi Sheehan that she will not run for the Senate and send Diane Feinstein into retirement.

CNN International. CNN. The news station formerly owned by liberal Ted Turner and his wife, Hanoi Jane Fonda. The station that admitted--years later--that they had overlooked Saddam atrocities so they could keep their Baghdad Bureau open. Makes you wonder what they are "overlooking" in Cuba so they can keep their Havana Bureau open. The news station that had Eason Jordan declaring to an European audience (just like CNN International--which is anti-American for its int'l audience) in Davos--that US troops were deliberately targetting journalists for death. Then the organizers of the conference refused to release the tape of Jordan's remarks. The MSM--with the exception of the indispensable Fox News Channel--ignored this explosive story, but the rightwing blogosphere kept the heat on and eventually claimed their 2nd big scalp (Dan Rather was the first) when Jordan resigned from CNN.

I do not recall that emotional wreck--Jack Cafferty--ever reading a pro-Bush email in 5 years! And CNN was the station that allowed Kerry campaign advisors, James Carville and Paul Begala, to host CNN's Crossfire show--a blatant conflict of interest.

The MSM is ignoring a historic milestone in Iraq.

What liberal media?