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| Iraq-Jordan |
| Five embeds kicked out of Iraq in recent months |
| 2005-01-08 |
| Via Captain's Quarters: As Iraq moves closer to its first democratic elections later this month, the number of news organizations requesting embedded slots with military units there is on the rise, according to officials. But those new embeds better watch their step. E&P has learned that five journalists have been kicked out of embed slots in the past three months for reporting secure information. "They were all for operational security reasons, (revealing) something that would have been of use to the enemy," Maj. Kris Meyle, who runs the embed program, told E&P from Baghdad this morning. "Generally, it gets done very quickly. Usually it was something that was not done intentionally by the reporter." Meyle would not disclose the identities of those who were "disembedded" or the news organizations for which they worked. But she did not recall any from newspapers. "I remember them being broadcast," she said. |
| Posted by:Seafarious |
| #9 Maybe they were a positive during the first six weeks of the war, but not since. Without question the MSM propaganda mill has worked overtime since last summer. Our only real hope in the PR war is to give voice to the Iraqis themselves. It f***ing boggles the imagination that the big story now is anything other than the elections, an extraordinary leap forward for not just the Iraqis but for all the non-Israeli peoples of the middle east. But La historia m'absolvera |
| Posted by: lex 2005-01-08 10:17:00 PM |
| #8 Lex, I agree with your point that the fewer middlemen (i.e. filters) between me and the news gatherer, the better. But embeds provided that, at least during combat. If all we get is somebody at the Saddam Sheraton regurgitating the daily press conference so that it comes out anti-US, we're not better off. |
| Posted by: Mrs. Davis 2005-01-08 10:12:22 PM |
| #7 I'm not sure the embeds have been positive. Most consumers of MSM tripe, regardless of the country where they're based, made up their minds long ago re the virtue of the invasion and are in no mood to let facts disrupt their calm and certain certainties. I'd say the one thing that can make a difference is first-hand accounts from the Iraqis themselves. We should be helping bloggers and amateur filmmakers in every way possible. Propaganda will come out, of course, but the fact is that most of the fascists in Iraq are more concerned with killing than with documenting what's going on in the streets. |
| Posted by: lex 2005-01-08 10:06:33 PM |
| #6 The military is screwed either way. If that's the case, then get rid of the embedded program and be done with it. No use doing something with no prospect of a future payoff. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2005-01-08 11:18:40 AM |
| #5 The military is screwed either way. |
| Posted by: Captain America 2005-01-08 1:14:28 AM |
| #4 Verlaine - Agree with combat phase - some excellent work was done. Since, well, it's always a sore spot around here, no? I agree that Mil should expect problems and have a couple of staff DB-diggers ready to counter stupidity, such as the October Surpise BS on missing explosives. Waaay too slow off the mark, even though the data was in their systems - a full and complete accounting. Mebbe it was keyed wrong - I can help wit dat! I dunno if they waited cuz they wanted to locate and stand up the guy who wrote them, which they did, or if they just didn't get it and realize this was a political bomb that had been tossed out and need immediate defusing. So what are you going to do there? What can you tell us? I'd love to see the situation up close for myself - color me jealous! Need a web apps developer? Lol! Not bloody likely for a couple or three years, heh, but maybe someday. I've been sitting still for 10 months and I'm starting to get antsy, again. |
| Posted by: .com 2005-01-08 1:03:25 AM |
| #3 Don't agree in this case, .com. So long as standards (security and anything else deemed essential) are fanatically enforced (and butts removed promptly when lines are crossed), I think the embed concept is a net positive. Our forces are not just the best, but probably the most ethical and conscientious as well, and this comes through from embed reporting. I think this was the clear lesson of the major combat phase. When warranted, I'd like to see much more vigorous correction and counter-explanation by the military spokesmen to accompany the embed info, however. Who knows, maybe I can suggest it to CENTCOM on the spot -- I should be in Iraq prior to the end of the month. |
| Posted by: Verlaine 2005-01-08 12:22:44 AM |
| #2 and don't let the screen door hit ya! |
| Posted by: 2b 2005-01-08 12:12:18 AM |
| #1 The embeds are certainly a mixed bag yielding the expected mix of coverage quality and honesty. I would not complain if the military kicked them all out and did their own reporting. It would be far more factual, honest, and spin-free. I don't want a Howard K Smith Commentary anymore. I want Sgt Friday. |
| Posted by: .com 2005-01-08 12:10:09 AM |