Is Anyone Actually Shocked?
This detailed article from The Weekly Standard reports the firing of several al Jazeera employees, including the Director General, for reported ties to the ex-Iraqi Government. I assumed they were merely sympathetic to their Arab brethren’s defense against the coalition forces, not actually in bed with them. Those who may have felt that they were the true “fair and balanced” network during the war coverage (especially in terms of cilivian body count) may want to rethink their opinion. (Don’t get excited. I don’t think Fox News is either.)
May 28th, 2003 at 9:38 pm
Well, as long as you’re listing suspect organizations, don’t neglect The Weekly Standard itself. It’s edited by Bill Kristol, a central figure in the neocon cabal, and is basically operated at a loss by News Corporation because Rupert Murdoch likes the idea of an unabashadly right-wing political monthly. In a sense there’s a nice parallel there to Saddam Hussein paying off al Jazeera reporters for (presumably) favorable coverage, though I guess the parallel would be more apt if Saddam had actually funded al Jazeera, rather than just bribing a few staffers.
I note that the article fails to mention any evidence actually linking the station’s fired managing director to the Hussein payoffs, though one could reasonably infer that he’s being held accountable for the chicanery that took place underneath him, if not for taking money himself.
But still, it’s a fair cop. Darn that Hussein, bribing people and all.
Oh, and I really liked the way the Weekly Standard’s reporter managed to mention Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein in the same sentence, even if there wasn’t really any sinister connection to report.
May 29th, 2003 at 6:29 am
No doubt, The Weekly Standard has their own agenda (as do a number of publications or columnists that are posted here), but this story is getting fairly wide notice across a number of media outlets. Therefore, the story is, minus one or two speculative comments, largely accurate.