[antimedia] antimedia: The media is opposed to embedding....

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Posted by antimedia:
The media is opposed to embedding....
http://www.antimedia.us/posts/1155082295.shtml


   ....because they claim it prevents them from being objective. What is
   [1]this, if not the definition of a lack of objectivity?

     KURTZ: Richard Engel in Lebanon, letâs talk a little bit about your
     efforts to cover Hezbollah. Have you had instances in which
     Hezbollah guerillas have tried to interfere with your reporting?
     ENGEL: Yes and no; and the reason Iâm giving you that answer is
     that until now Hezbollah has been very difficult to cover. Weâve
     come into town several times and only found Hezbollah fighters.
     They donât want to be on film. They will talk to us off camera, but
     when the cameras come out they suddenly go quiet.
     Theyâve not tried to stop us filming other events while weâre in
     the field, but they have, on several occasions, threatened
     reporters here in Tyre, south Lebanon. From the location where
     weâre standing right now, weâve been able to see, today and on
     other days, outgoing Katyusha rockets. And on more than one
     occasion people from Hezbollah have come and said, âDo not film the
     locations of these rockets when theyâre being launched.â
     At one time, when we were talking and having a conversation with
     this Hezbollah representative, he said, âLook, weâre serious, we
     will kill you if you film these outgoing rockets.â So it is a
     threat, but when weâve been out in the field, weâve not had
     situations where they told us to stop filming.

   In other words, if you dare publish the truth, we'll kill you. Where's
   the objectivity in that? At least, if you embed with friendly forces,
   you have a chance at staying alive. If you try to cover a war from the
   terrorists' side, the only way you can stay alive is to not tell the
   truth.
   As Michael Yon, Bill Roggio and others have proven, it's entirely
   possible to write good stories, with objectivity and insight, while
   embedding with US troops. As this admission reveals, it is impossible
   to do this from the other side.
   You'd think the geniuses in the media could figure this out.

References

   1. http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=21999&only&rss