The media’s Iraq drawdown.
By on Mar 27th, 2008 at 8:00 pm
The media’s Iraq drawdown.
Eric Alterman and George Zornick document the evidence of the media’s declining coverage of the Iraq war. They note:
– A study by the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism found that in all of 2007, the topic of the Iraq war occupied an average of 15.5 percent of the “newshole” in the media; in the last quarter it fell to nine percent, and then to 3.9 percent in the first quarter of 2008.
– The broadcast networks’ nightly shows devoted more than 4,100 minutes to Iraq in 2003 and 3,000 in 2004, before going down to 2,000 a year, according to Andrew Tyndall, who monitors the broadcasts and posts.
– Only two newspapers noted [on the front-page] the 4,000th combat death of a U.S. soldier in Iraq
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Well, would this be due to collusion on the MSMs part with BushCo? The Iraq “war” was slated to be THE major election issue of 2008, and the neocons are extremely vulnerable on that issue. So, report it less and less, and change the subject to something that puts them in a better light… like the economy…Ha Ha
March 27th, 2008 at 8:23 pmThe Iraq War is SO five years ago, duuude. What we need is a sexy new war for the aspiring Ernie Pyles out there. Iran, you listenin’?
March 27th, 2008 at 8:29 pmYeah, well, there have been an awful lot of juicy Britney Spears stories to report, and inquiring minds want to know.
March 27th, 2008 at 8:44 pmThis post is a bit dishonest, in my opinion. When I read that only two newspapers had noted the 4000-dead milestone, I was shocked. In outrage, I clicked the link – and found a Huffpo post complaining that only two newspapers gave it full-front page treatment.
That doesn’t mean the same as “noted”. I wouldn’t be surprised if nearly all papers “noted” the event, albeit in the inside pages.
Even a sensitive, extensive treatment in the Los Angeles Times was criticized – because they didn’t use the ENTIRE front page.
I think the war is being ignored in the media lately, and that’s deplorable. But let’s not get our noses out of joint because only two papers marked the milestone with an entire front page.
March 27th, 2008 at 8:44 pmYeah Badmoodman, we need a brand new sexy assed war. This one is gettin’ REAL OLD!
March 27th, 2008 at 8:45 pmBritney’s crazy-assed brain and smelly snatch trump the Iraq War.
March 27th, 2008 at 8:51 pmHow ’bout Brazil? Can we invade Rio De Janeiro?
March 27th, 2008 at 8:53 pmI’ll volunteer to patrol the beach in case any Portuguese man-o-wars wash up.
Nevar Says:
March 27th, 2008 at 8:53 pm
How ’bout Brazil? Can we invade Rio De Janeiro?
______
Hah! More likely you’ll find Daryll “doin’ the Lord’s work”…
March 27th, 2008 at 9:08 pmDon’t you know the surge is working?
Violence is down.
Only an average of one dead American soldier a day, not that big a deal.
The odds that you know him or her is actually very remote and the corporate media will see to it that you’ll never hear their stories….WAIT BREAKING NEWS…HEY LOOK THERE’S BRITNEY GOING TO THE 7-11 TO BUY JUNK FOOD.
America is becoming a nation of self-absorbed retards.
March 27th, 2008 at 9:34 pmIsn’t that the idea? The less we hear about the public’s money being funneled into private sector “defense” contracts, the easier it is to continue the flow.
March 27th, 2008 at 9:35 pmWill the U.S. military be able to leave Iraq next year?
http://www.youpolls.com/details.asp?pid=1987
.
March 27th, 2008 at 9:37 pmHey, at least one American entity is withdrawing from Iraq.
March 27th, 2008 at 9:44 pm.
But…but…what about Obama’s minister?
March 27th, 2008 at 10:13 pmWe got angry and nothing changed. We wrote letters and nothing changed. We marched in large numbers and nothing changed. Fsck it. I’m changing the channel…
March 27th, 2008 at 10:15 pmheard on sam/randi today:
Ensuring Permanence
The Bush Administration Is Negotiating a Long-Term Iraq Occupation
By Spencer Ackerman 03/26/2008
http://www.washingtonindependent.com/view/ensuring-permanence
March 27th, 2008 at 10:22 pmCan we believe anything Hillary says anymore?
March 27th, 2008 at 10:31 pmGuess that about covers it.
also, from sam…
The Stakes
27 Mar 2008 09:09 am
Anthony Cordesman on the stakes in the current fighting, which he remarks “is as much a power struggle for control of the south, and the Shi’ite parts of Baghdad and the rest of the country, as an effort to establish central government authority and legitimate rule.”
[...]
http://matthewyglesias.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/03/the_stakes_2.php
March 27th, 2008 at 10:31 pmkinda hard to believe much of ANYthing hillary mcClieberman says now…
March 27th, 2008 at 10:34 pmThe republican FCC has permitted the media to be held by just a handful of corporations. This centralization has given rise to the greatest ability to manipulate what we hear and see in the history of broadcasting and print.
March 27th, 2008 at 10:35 pm[...]
At least the Clintons aren’t in league with the sine qua non of the vast right wing conspiracy to label Obama as an employer of anti- semites……..woops.
links here…
March 27th, 2008 at 10:37 pmsorry about the OT…
time to unfold…
g’nite all…
March 27th, 2008 at 10:39 pmSo?
-GSD
March 27th, 2008 at 10:45 pmYeah, that’s the guy. After two weeks of constant drumbeat and lead on every news story, I haven’t seen anything new in at least a week.
Fact: Shrub is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of
thousands of people and the homelessness of millions.
Fact: Obama’s minister is responsible for no one’s death.
I don’t think you can equate the two. Well, perhaps you can, but that’s not my problem. Personally, I don’t care to hear a whole lot more drivel about Obama’s minister because it’s not relavent to this election or anything else, for that matter.
March 27th, 2008 at 10:48 pmrepublicans hate facts Says:
March 27th, 2008 at 10:27 pm
woodguy Says:
March 27th, 2008 at 10:13 pm
But…but…what about Obama’s minister?
You mean the guy that printed an editorial calling for and arguing destruction of Israel by a Hamas activist? Yeah, that’s a great sign of good judgment isn’t it? Or maybe you prefer to talk about how Obama blamed Alexander Hamilton and not George Bush and Greenspan/Bernanke for the economic collapse?
Don’t bring up Obama and pretend like his poor personal judgment of aligning with bigots and extremists isn’t a reflection of him and his values. Because if you believe it isn’t, then what does that say about his cluelessness?
See above post @ 25.
March 27th, 2008 at 10:49 pmJeremiah Wright may have used some unfortunate language, but he’s not necessarily lying.
March 27th, 2008 at 10:50 pm“… you hypocrites that defend Wright and Obama would be whining… How said.”
_________
My goodness… what a nasty, self-serving generalization.
What does “How said” mean?
March 28th, 2008 at 12:17 am“Fact. Obama said we should have invaded Pakistan, yet another example of his poor judgment. Bush hadn’t killed people (that we know of) before he became president either, but just the same way there are signs of Obama’s bad judgment, so were there signs of Bush’s. Stupid people don’t learn from the past, thanks for showing why it’s important to not be a stupid person. You’re a great posterchild.”
You are a liar, and a racist fool. You don’t fool anybody; your fear of minorities is as clear as your racism. Obama never said we should invade pakistan, and the fact that you would lie about that sheds true light on your ignorance and bigotry.
March 28th, 2008 at 12:43 amYou’re welcome. Thank you for the name-calling and the “poster child” comment–very original and clever, I must say.
By the way, o FACT guru. Obama never “said we should have invaded Pakistan.” Show me a link to a legitimate news source for this talking point that those who live and die by talking points love to site. It never happened, although my guess is that it makes no difference to you; you heard it “somewhere” and it fits into your world view, therefore, it is true. Ignorance is self-pertetuating.
I might just suggest that you cut down on the caffeine, actually read the news rather than spout talking points, and perhaps take an anger management class.
March 28th, 2008 at 2:05 amOne more suggestion from a stupid person, o factmeister: English classes are available at your local community college. You should avail yourself of them. Self improvement, you know.
March 28th, 2008 at 2:09 am>Britney’s crazy-assed brain and smelly snatch
their more likely to find biological weapons there..
March 28th, 2008 at 2:22 am.
This proves that:
IGNORANCE IS BLISS!
NO?
.
March 28th, 2008 at 4:14 am225 Iraqis, 1 US Soldier, 3 US Contractors Killed; 538 Iraqis Wounded
Bush: ‘Normalcy Is Returning to Iraq’
My reading is that the US faced a dilemma in Iraq. It needed to have new provincial elections in an attempt to mollify the Sunni Arabs, especially in Sunni-majority provinces like Diyala, which has nevertheless been ruled by the Shiite Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq. But if they have provincial elections, their chief ally, the Islamic Supreme Council, might well lose southern provinces to the Sadr Movement. In turn, the Sadrists are demanding a timetable for US withdrawal, whereas ISCI wants US troops to remain. So the setting of October, 2008, as the date for provincial elections provoked this crisis. I think Cheney probably told ISCI and Prime Minister al-Maliki that the way to fix this problem and forestall the Sadrists oming to power in Iraq, was to destroy the Mahdi Army, the Sadrists’ paramilitary. Without that coercive power, the Sadrists might not remain so important, is probably their thinking. I believe them to be wrong, and suspect that if the elections are fair, the Sadrists will sweep to power and may even get a sympathy vote. It is admittedly a big ‘if.’
March 28th, 2008 at 6:49 am39. Tobie Tall
Thanks for the well-informed comment. I found these two links helpful,too:
http://www.longwarjournal.org/feature/insideiraqipolitics.php
http://alternet.org/waroniraq/80580/
This latest burst of fighting goes so far beyond “sectarian violence” but, as the latter article suggests, it’s too nuanced for the MSM and we have a president(?) who “doesn’t do nuance.” This is a battle for the future of Iraq snd I think your read on Cheney–who has tied that future to al Maliki’s government–is valid.
March 28th, 2008 at 7:32 amGin Says:
March 28th, 2008 at 12:25 am
Just watched FITNA, can’t wait for Faiz to open comments about it.
Can’t wait spread the hate speech around, huh?
March 28th, 2008 at 7:35 amKilo Says:
March 28th, 2008 at 5:15 am
AIDS was developed by the government to kill blacks was what he said.
Apart from claiming it’s 1985 and this whole “AIDS” thing is still mysterious and new to you, I don’t see a way around that for ya.
That’s a prominent, if scientifically incorrect, belief in some segments of the African-American and African-African communities. Just cause it’s not true doesn’t make it a lie when a preacher who believes it says it.
If it turns out there’s no God, does that mean every religious leader in the world is a liar?
March 28th, 2008 at 7:51 amTobie Tall Says:
March 28th, 2008 at 6:49 am
225 Iraqis, 1 US Soldier, 3 US Contractors Killed; 538 Iraqis Wounded
I thought you were going to India…
March 28th, 2008 at 7:54 amWell, it’s an election year, you know. Obviously, the “liberal” media is cutting their candidates a break! ;-}
March 28th, 2008 at 8:36 amRestrict the Media.
Yup.
We’re living in a Fascist States of America.
March 28th, 2008 at 8:39 amFox News was way out in front of this trend. They stopped reporting news about Iraq years ago.
March 28th, 2008 at 9:12 amJust watched FITNA, can’t wait for Faiz to open comments about it.
March 28th, 2008 at 9:12 amMaybe you watch “Bush’s war” instead? Though your and kilo’s brain might explode if it absorbed anything but drug limpballs talking points!
If it turns out there’s no God, does that mean every religious leader in the world is a liar?
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Heh… thanks, toaster head.
I missed that part of Wright’s speech, Kilo.
March 28th, 2008 at 10:19 amBy the way, what’s your take on Condi Rice’s blame for racism today/
Kinda sounds familiar….
And today, there are now 4004 American deaths. Think anyone is going to mention that? Aren’t each one of these deaths worth reporting?
Not as long as we have the Bush/Cheney Corporate-constrolled MSM.
March 28th, 2008 at 12:21 pmThe press thrives and survives on sensationalism. Tragic storms. Tragic violence. Divisive issues. That’s what they do.
It is possible that the press is complicit and negligent in its reporting on Iraq.
It is also possible that the story has become less sensational or less divisive, for whatever reason.
If you feel the press is bias or negligent in its reporting, it’s possible that you’re right. It’s also possible that what you deem is newsworthy, is not newsworthy to most other people.
The public may have become disinterested in Iraq or the situation may be stabilizing, and hence less sensational. Less newsworthy.
March 28th, 2008 at 2:51 pm