[antimedia] antimedia: A better example of what's wrong with the media....

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Posted by antimedia:
A better example of what's wrong with the media....
http://www.antimedia.us/posts/1176169383.shtml


   ....could not be found [1]than this. A newspaper (of small
   circulation) has decided to run a column written by a US Maj. Gen.
   serving in Iraq. Some in the newsroom are upset and want the column
   cancelled. Their reasoning?

     Catron said Monday that Lynch is not paid for the column, adding
     that at least three newsroom staffers have complained. "They were
     objecting to it and there is a valued argument there," she said,
     noting that one of those who objected was the paper's military
     reporter, who could not immediately be reached for comment. "Our
     military reporter is quite concerned, and we are not finished
     talking about it."
     Among the gripes is that the piece ran on a news page instead of an
     editorial or Op-Ed page. In print it is labeled "commentary," but
     online it is simply labeled as "story." It does not make clear if
     Lynch wrote the entire piece, or if it was ghost written by a
     public affairs person. The names of two other military officials,
     who were unreachable by phone Monday, are listed at the bottom as
     having contributed to the report.
     "I can't tell if they wrote it or not," Catron said. "As long as he
     mentioned that he had help."
     One staffer, requesting anonymity, passed on his objection to E&P.
     The staff, he wrote in an e-mail, "has argued it belongs on the
     opinion page, if anything. Is this appropriate for a 50,000-reader
     newspaper that purports to be free from government influence? Staff
     members feel it has undermined the newspaper's credibility and
     independence."

   What kind of Orwellian world do these people live in? A column written
   by and signed by an American general would undermine the paper's
   credibility but anonymous quotes from unnamed US officials would not?
   They will happily write articles that quote this general but allowing
   him to speak for himself risks their independence?
   The truth is, what they really object to is allowing an uncensored
   voice to speak in support of the war within the pages of their paper.
   They could at least have the honesty and decency to admit that.

References

   1. http://editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003569010&imw=Y