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R-wing planting stories undermining free press?

KidRocks

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Anyone else concerned with the possible corruption of the First Ammendment and Freedom of the Press, via some in the Republican White House and in the US Military who are apparently gladly purchasing and planting stories in the media?

They've done it here in the States and now it appears that they are doing the same in Iraq.

Wake up America!



http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2005-12-08-media-probe_x.htm

Probe into Iraq coverage widens

BAGHDAD — A U.S. investigation into allegations that the American military is buying positive coverage in the Iraqi media has expanded to examine a press club founded and financed by the U.S. Army.
The Baghdad Press Club was created last year by the U.S. military as a way to promote progress amid the violence and chaos of Iraq, said Lt. Col. Barry Johnson, a military spokesman.

The Army acknowledges funding the club and offering "reporter compensation," but insists officers did not demand favorable coverage. "Members are not required nor asked to write favorably," said Lt. Col. Robert Whetstone. "They are simply invited to report on events." He said the military exercised no editorial control over the coverage.

The U.S. military investigation, headed by Rear Adm. Scott Van Buskirk, will look into whether there were efforts to place U.S.-produced stories into the local press without identifying the United States as the source. Paying reporters directly to write positive stories might also violate ethical guidelines.

The administration has expressed concerns about the allegations. Even if reporting is true, "it's got to be done in a way that reinforces a free media, not undermines it," national security adviser Stephen Hadley has said.

Ahmad al-Hamdani, a reporter at Alhurra, an American-funded television station, said press club members were invited to cover U.S.-led reconstruction efforts, such as restored sewage plants and newly-opened schools. The syndicate of 25 to 30 freelance reporters and staff employees for television stations and newspapers were paid about $25 for each story and $45 if the piece ran with photos, al-Hamdani said. Television reporters were paid $50 for pieces, he said. He said he did not participate.

Whetstone would not say how much the U.S. military paid the club, but said the budget included "basic journalism equipment, interpreters, assistant director, office employee, board members and reporter compensation."

It's not uncommon for Iraqi journalists to accept gifts or cash in exchange for favorable stories, said Emad al-Sharr, a reporter for Radio Dijla in Iraq. Cash or gifts such as watches and pens are often handed out following press conferences or on trips with Iraqi officials, he said. "The problem is you have poor journalists who will accept anything: $100, $50, $20 to publish articles under their names," al-Hamdani said. "They don't think it's wrong." Most monthly salaries in Iraq are under $300.

The investigation was launched after allegations surfaced that the U.S. military was paying to place stories and disguise the source. It centered on the Pentagon's contract with the Lincoln Group, a contractor hired to promote positive news about U.S. efforts in Iraq. The role of the Baghdad Press Club was first written about by Knight Ridder news service.

Laurie Adler, a spokeswoman for the Lincoln Group, said the firm "was not involved with the Baghdad Press Club."
 
Yo yo yo, we got a thread on this homey!

lockball.gif
 
Deegan said:
Yo yo yo, we got a thread on this homey!

lockball.gif


You've got a thread on this with the angle of the r-wing undermining the 1st Ammendment?

I didn't think so.
 
KidRocks said:
You've got a thread on this with the angle of the r-wing undermining the 1st Ammendment?

I didn't think so.

Yes, and if there is a new developement, why not insert it in the thread that already exists?:confused:


lockball.gif
 
Deegan said:
Yes, and if there is a new developement, why not insert it in the thread that already exists?:confused:


lockball.gif



My dear Deegan,

With all due respect, this forum is slow enough without you insisting on slowing it down even further, let us be able to inject a few different angles, different views, different ways of approaching a similiar topic until we pick up a few more posters who add more posting. It's not that busy here that diversity slows it down.

Until traffic picks up here, let it ride.

Quit yer bitchen. :2wave:
 
KidRocks said:
My dear Deegan,

With all due respect, this forum is slow enough without you insisting on slowing it down even further, let us be able to inject a few different angles, different views, different ways of approaching a similiar topic until we pick up a few more posters who add more posting. It's not that busy here that diversity slows it down.

Until traffic picks up here, let it ride.

Quit yer bitchen. :2wave:

LOL, I am just making an observation, it's not my call, but enjoy your little bashing Bush session.:2wave:
 
it's really not surprising that the u.s. government is planting propaganda stories in the iraqi press. after all, the u.s. government has been convicted in u.s. courts of doing the same thing here in the u.s., and they didn't even appeal the decision because it was so blatantly obvious.
 
1.)I didn't know that the First Amendment applied to Iraq.
2.)How is this right wing?
 
mpg said:
1.)I didn't know that the First Amendment applied to Iraq.
Are we not trying to create a free democratic country? Should we not then as the "leader of the free world" set an example and show them how great our freedom is?
 
Republican Principles


I'm a Republican Because...

I BELIEVE the strength of our nation lies with the individual and that each person’s dignity, freedom, ability and responsibility must be honored.

I BELIEVE in equal rights, equal justice and equal opportunity for all, regardless of race, creed, sex, age or disability.

I BELIEVE free enterprise and encouraging individual initiative have brought this nation opportunity, economic growth and prosperity.

I BELIEVE government must practice fiscal responsibility and allow individuals to keep more of the money they earn.

I BELIEVE the proper role of government is to provide for the people only those critical functions that cannot be performed by individuals or private organizations, and that the best government is that which governs least.

I BELIEVE the most effective, responsible and responsive government is government closest to the people.

I BELIEVE Americans must retain the principles that have made us strong while developing new and innovative ideas to meet the challenges of changing times.

I BELIEVE Americans value and should preserve our national strength and pride while working to extend peace, freedom and human rights throughout the world.

FINALLY, I believe the Republican Party is the best vehicle for translating these ideals into positive and successful principles of government.


:2wave:
 
If this isn't the icing on the turd!
Most of the media puts all it's resources into churning out every negative story it can find in Iraq leaving no stone unturned. Any positive reporting must be a right wing payoff!

How utterly predictable!
 
Deegan said:
I'm a Republican Because...

I BELIEVE the strength of our nation lies with the individual and that each person’s dignity, freedom, ability and responsibility must be honored.
Yep and the Partiot Act does just that.

Deegan said:
I BELIEVE in equal rights, equal justice and equal opportunity for all, regardless of race, creed, sex, age or disability.
Which is why the repulican party opposes/opposed all legislation for civil rights, as well as the ban on homosexuals rights and a womans right to choice.

Deegan said:
I BELIEVE free enterprise and encouraging individual initiative have brought this nation opportunity, economic growth and prosperity.
Especially to all enterprises that donate at least $500,000 and above to the republican party.

Deegan said:
I BELIEVE government must practice fiscal responsibility and allow individuals to keep more of the money they earn.
I agree with you completely, they do indeed promote the fiscal responsibility of the individual as long as it is not themselves. Why we have the largest deficit in the history of this country.

Deegan said:
I BELIEVE the proper role of government is to provide for the people only those critical functions that cannot be performed by individuals or private organizations, and that the best government is that which governs least.
One name, Michael Brown.

Deegan said:
I BELIEVE the most effective, responsible and responsive government is government closest to the people.
Yep, deffinetely if we're all filthy rich old white men. Another name pops to mind when you mention "closest to the people" Barbara Bush.

Deegan said:
I BELIEVE Americans must retain the principles that have made us strong while developing new and innovative ideas to meet the challenges of changing times.
Hmmm, is that done through intense editing of everything that comes out of the National Academy of Science that shows anything that the administration or government policy doesn't agree with? Well then surely that will deffinetely promote more innovation and ideas.

Deegan said:
I BELIEVE Americans value and should preserve our national strength and pride while working to extend peace, freedom and human rights throughout the world.
Just what are American values? Speaking of which, who the hell are we to tell other countries what to do when we're so messed up ourselves that we spend billions of dollars to fight a war that we knowingly knew was based on false information while ignoring the real threat, and merely making lipservice infrastructure that hardly make us safer or more secure?

Deegan said:
FINALLY, I believe the Republican Party is the best vehicle for translating these ideals into positive and successful principles of government.
well that is your belief which you are entitield to, if only it were the facts though.


If only the republican party today were more like that of, dare I say it, the Nixon Era. Have some real balls and actually be promoting of those ideologies that you mentioned.
Unfortunately modern republicans are just a whole bunch of bible toting fundamentalists that only get eleccted through scare and smear tactics (McCain as an exception).
 
jfuh said:
Are we not trying to create a free democratic country? Should we not then as the "leader of the free world" set an example and show them how great our freedom is?

I agree that this is bad, but it's not corruption of the First Amendment, as stated in the first post.
 
Deegan said:
Republican Principles


I'm a Republican Because...

I BELIEVE the strength of our nation lies with the individual and that each person’s dignity, freedom, ability and responsibility must be honored.

I BELIEVE in equal rights, equal justice and equal opportunity for all, regardless of race, creed, sex, age or disability.

I BELIEVE free enterprise and encouraging individual initiative have brought this nation opportunity, economic growth and prosperity.

I BELIEVE government must practice fiscal responsibility and allow individuals to keep more of the money they earn.

I BELIEVE the proper role of government is to provide for the people only those critical functions that cannot be performed by individuals or private organizations, and that the best government is that which governs least.

I BELIEVE the most effective, responsible and responsive government is government closest to the people.

I BELIEVE Americans must retain the principles that have made us strong while developing new and innovative ideas to meet the challenges of changing times.

I BELIEVE Americans value and should preserve our national strength and pride while working to extend peace, freedom and human rights throughout the world.

FINALLY, I believe the Republican Party is the best vehicle for translating these ideals into positive and successful principles of government.


:2wave:

Thank you, Deegan for this unsolicited but informative post.

Doing your kid's junior high civics class homework again, I see....tsk, tsk.:naughty
 
wrath said:
If this isn't the icing on the turd!
Most of the media puts all it's resources into churning out every negative story it can find in Iraq leaving no stone unturned. Any positive reporting must be a right wing payoff!

How utterly predictable!

Quick! Quick! - get the cameras! A family in Iraq is sittin gdown for a nice dinner.

On 9/11/01 there were two beautiful puppies born just outside the WTC.:roll:
 
Deegan said:
Republican Principles


I'm a Republican Because...

I BELIEVE the strength of our nation lies with the individual and that each person’s dignity, freedom, ability and responsibility must be honored.

I BELIEVE in equal rights, equal justice and equal opportunity for all, regardless of race, creed, sex, age or disability.

I BELIEVE free enterprise and encouraging individual initiative have brought this nation opportunity, economic growth and prosperity.

I BELIEVE government must practice fiscal responsibility and allow individuals to keep more of the money they earn.

I BELIEVE the proper role of government is to provide for the people only those critical functions that cannot be performed by individuals or private organizations, and that the best government is that which governs least.

I BELIEVE the most effective, responsible and responsive government is government closest to the people.

I BELIEVE Americans must retain the principles that have made us strong while developing new and innovative ideas to meet the challenges of changing times.

I BELIEVE Americans value and should preserve our national strength and pride while working to extend peace, freedom and human rights throughout the world.

FINALLY, I believe the Republican Party is the best vehicle for translating these ideals into positive and successful principles of government.


:2wave:

Deegan - I believe those principles too. I disagree with you that the Republican party is the one to get this done.

Look what one party Republican rule has done to this country in 5 short years!
 
Deegan said:
Republican Principles


I'm a Republican Because...
Is there a good reason that you've plagiarized this post? It was obvious to me, reading it, that these were not your words so why are you trying to pass them off as your words? Is that "Republican Ethics"

Source: http://www.gop.com/About/AboutRead.aspx?AboutType=3&Section=19

or here:

http://www.nfrw.org/republicans/principles.htm

or here:

http://www.fcrcc.org/republicanprinciples.htm

I think your post is a perfect example of why people do not trust Republicans anymore. Too often Republicans twist the truth or take credit for things that they are not responsible for and then they make up lies about their opposition or twist words into meanings that were not written or intended.

Do you know what plagiarism is?

plagiarism

n 1: a piece of writing that has been copied from someone else and is presented as being your own work 2: the act of plagiarizing; taking someone's words or ideas as if they were your own
 
26 X World Champs said:
Is there a good reason that you've plagiarized this post? It was obvious to me, reading it, that these were not your words so why are you trying to pass them off as your words? Is that "Republican Ethics"

Source: http://www.gop.com/About/AboutRead.aspx?AboutType=3&Section=19

or here:

http://www.nfrw.org/republicans/principles.htm

or here:

http://www.fcrcc.org/republicanprinciples.htm

I think your post is a perfect example of why people do not trust Republicans anymore. Too often Republicans twist the truth or take credit for things that they are not responsible for and then they make up lies about their opposition or twist words into meanings that were not written or intended.

Do you know what plagiarism is?

To play the devil's advocate here, I don't think Deegan was intending to plagiarize. The piece obviously was written by republicans as a representative document of their party. Using it is no more plagiaristic than someone using the Bill of Rights, Declaration of Independence or the Constitution as a representation of American democracy. That's just my opinion.
 
mixedmedia said:
To play the devil's advocate here
Perhaps that is correct.

If I posted something that included Democrative Prinicples and did not provide the source for the post, made it sound like I wrote it, would you defend me too or is this just another case of Republicans never admitting they make mistakes too?
 
26 X World Champs said:
Perhaps that is correct.

If I posted something that included Democrative Prinicples and did not provide the source for the post, made it sound like I wrote it, would you defend me too or is this just another case of Republicans never admitting they make mistakes too?

Of course I would. Most especially if it were a document put out on the internet as an expression of Democratic ideals.

I wasn't under the impression he wrote it. Which is why I made a joke about it.
 
mixedmedia said:
To play the devil's advocate here, I don't think Deegan was intending to plagiarize. The piece obviously was written by republicans as a representative document of their party. Using it is no more plagiaristic than someone using the Bill of Rights, Declaration of Independence or the Constitution as a representation of American democracy. That's just my opinion.


Thank you for not taking me for the idiot that Champs has, this is common knowledge, I'll have to remember to hold more hands in the future. And you are absolutely correct, it's a document made to be passed along freely, with no credit given.;)

In fact, I demand an apology from you Champs, I thought you were at the very least, an honorable person. I have in the past, stuck up for you because I believed that to be the truth, now I'll await your apology.
 
Last edited:
hipsterdufus said:
Quick! Quick! - get the cameras! A family in Iraq is sittin gdown for a nice dinner.
NOT POSSIBLE! According to news reports the few that are left are hiding under dinner tables and eating sand. :roll:
 
KidRocks said:
Anyone else concerned with the possible corruption of the First Ammendment and Freedom of the Press, via some in the Republican White House and in the US Military who are apparently gladly purchasing and planting stories in the media?

They've done it here in the States and now it appears that they are doing the same in Iraq.

Wake up America!



http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2005-12-08-media-probe_x.htm

Probe into Iraq coverage widens

BAGHDAD — A U.S. investigation into allegations that the American military is buying positive coverage in the Iraqi media has expanded to examine a press club founded and financed by the U.S. Army.
The Baghdad Press Club was created last year by the U.S. military as a way to promote progress amid the violence and chaos of Iraq, said Lt. Col. Barry Johnson, a military spokesman.

The Army acknowledges funding the club and offering "reporter compensation," but insists officers did not demand favorable coverage. "Members are not required nor asked to write favorably," said Lt. Col. Robert Whetstone. "They are simply invited to report on events." He said the military exercised no editorial control over the coverage.

The U.S. military investigation, headed by Rear Adm. Scott Van Buskirk, will look into whether there were efforts to place U.S.-produced stories into the local press without identifying the United States as the source. Paying reporters directly to write positive stories might also violate ethical guidelines.

The administration has expressed concerns about the allegations. Even if reporting is true, "it's got to be done in a way that reinforces a free media, not undermines it," national security adviser Stephen Hadley has said.

Ahmad al-Hamdani, a reporter at Alhurra, an American-funded television station, said press club members were invited to cover U.S.-led reconstruction efforts, such as restored sewage plants and newly-opened schools. The syndicate of 25 to 30 freelance reporters and staff employees for television stations and newspapers were paid about $25 for each story and $45 if the piece ran with photos, al-Hamdani said. Television reporters were paid $50 for pieces, he said. He said he did not participate.

Whetstone would not say how much the U.S. military paid the club, but said the budget included "basic journalism equipment, interpreters, assistant director, office employee, board members and reporter compensation."

It's not uncommon for Iraqi journalists to accept gifts or cash in exchange for favorable stories, said Emad al-Sharr, a reporter for Radio Dijla in Iraq. Cash or gifts such as watches and pens are often handed out following press conferences or on trips with Iraqi officials, he said. "The problem is you have poor journalists who will accept anything: $100, $50, $20 to publish articles under their names," al-Hamdani said. "They don't think it's wrong." Most monthly salaries in Iraq are under $300.

The investigation was launched after allegations surfaced that the U.S. military was paying to place stories and disguise the source. It centered on the Pentagon's contract with the Lincoln Group, a contractor hired to promote positive news about U.S. efforts in Iraq. The role of the Baghdad Press Club was first written about by Knight Ridder news service.

Laurie Adler, a spokeswoman for the Lincoln Group, said the firm "was not involved with the Baghdad Press Club."

So news complains about news getting paid by administration? But don't they all? :confused: What ever happend to the other third parties that pay them to push an agenda? Is it OK then?
 
Deegan said:
In fact, I demand an apology from you Champs, I thought you were at the very least, an honorable person. I have in the past, stuck up for you because I believed that to be the truth, now I'll await your apology.
If an apology is what you want, then an apology is what you shall have! I'm sorry that you and I misunderstood each other.

I read your post and believed, sincerely, that you were posting it as your original work, hence my objection. You've been around here long enough to know that it is common practice to always cite sources when using other people's words.

Sorry for the misunderstanding, and I most definitely was not calling you an idiot. There are people in this community who I think are idiots, but you are not one of them. How can you be, you love the Cubbies! I'm a gigantic baseball fan and respect anyone who also enjoys America's pastime with the exception, of course of Bosox fans, for they are evil, evil people.

You know, when I think of the Bosox I also think of President Reagan's most famous words:

"Tear down that wall!"

:rofl
 
stsburns said:
So news complains about news getting paid by administration? But don't they all? :confused: What ever happend to the other third parties that pay them to push an agenda? Is it OK then?
I don't think that there's anything wrong with the news being paid as long as it is called exactly what it is. Not news, but commercials or more explanatory propaganda. I don't think it is ever ok to push an agenda through anything labeled as news (ie Fox News).
What really hurts is how this is reflected in a region that we are already hated. Here we are trying to push and show how great our freedoms are, then we stick our feet in our mouth when we get caught with our pants down by paid propaganda and not actual good news. It's not what we stand for and it's not how our country should be percieved.
 
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