Here Is An Illustration On Why The Media Can No Longer Be Trusted.....

Here is another fine example of the press -a press with an agenda instead of fulfilling their mandate of reporting news- failing to report on a significant change in what is going on in Iraq. The liberal press is invested in failure in Iraq to support Democrats that want to fail in Iraq as a political wedge against GW Bush and Republicans. For Democrats and the press, its all about getting elected, not what is best for America or the world at large.



These 2 reporters argue why this 'positive' news should not be reported for various reasons. What follows is a partial transcript of this segment....

HOWARD KURTZ, HOST: The news from Iraq has been consistently depressing for several years now, a continuous tableau of death and destruction. But when the administration released more positive casualty figures this week, the media paid little attention. A couple of sentences on the "CBS EVENING NEWS" and NBC "NIGHTLY NEWS," The New York Times ran it on page 10, The Washington Post," page 14, USA Today page 16. The L.A. Times, a couple of paragraphs at the bottom of a page 4 story.

One exception was Charlie Gibson, who made it the lead story on ABC's "WORLD NEWS."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHARLES GIBSON, ABC ANCHOR: The U.S. military reports the fourth straight month of decline in troop deaths, 66 American troops died in September, each a terrible tragedy for a family, but the number far less than those who died in August. And the Iraqi government says civilian deaths across Iraq fell by half last month.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KURTZ: Joining us now to put this into perspective, Robin Wright, who covers national security for The Washington Post. And CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr.

Robin Wright, should that decline in Iraq casualties have gotten more media attention?

ROBIN WRIGHT, THE WASHINGTON POST: Not necessarily. The fact is we're at the beginning of a trend -- and it's not even sure that it is a trend yet. There is also an enormous dispute over how to count the numbers. There are different kinds of deaths in Iraq.

There are combat deaths. There are sectarian deaths. And there are the deaths of criminal -- from criminal acts. There are also a lot of numbers that the U.S. frankly is not counting. For example, in southern Iraq, there is Shiite upon Shiite violence, which is not sectarian in the Shiite versus Sunni. And the U.S. also doesn't have much of a capability in the south.

So the numbers themselves are tricky. Long-term, General Odierno, who was in town this week, said he is looking for irreversible momentum, and that, after two months, has not yet been reached.

KURTZ: Barbara Starr, CNN did mostly quick reads by anchors of these numbers. There was a taped report on "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT." Do you think this story deserved more attention? We don't know whether it is a trend or not but those are intriguing numbers.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: But that's the problem, we don't know whether it is a trend about specifically the decline in the number of U.S. troops being killed in Iraq. This is not enduring progress. This is a very positive step on that potential road to progress.

KURTZ: But let's say that the figures had shown that casualties were going up for U.S. soldiers and going up for Iraqi civilians. I think that would have made some front pages.

STARR: Oh, I think inevitably it would have. I mean, that's certainly -- that, by any definition, is news. Look, nobody more than a Pentagon correspondent would like to stop reporting the number of deaths, interviewing grieving families, talking to soldiers who have lost their arms and their legs in the war. But, is this really enduring progress?

We've had five years of the Pentagon telling us there is progress, there is progress. Forgive me for being skeptical, I need to see a little bit more than one month before I get too excited about all of this.

This interview with these individual reporters is terrible on so many levels. It shows that they are willing to argue against reason with unreasonable and erroneous arguments. It is evil and sick.

Thanks you Starr for your being skeptical and not subjecting us to some kind of potential positive story coming out of Iraq. But Starr, your job is to report what is going on. And you are not doing that and admittedly you would have reported that if deaths were rising, that that would have been reported, probably breathlessly.

Furthermore, one month of declines is not a trend as argued by the journalists, but it has been a decline of 4 months from the peak in May. So, these journalists do not even know the facts of what should be reported.

Also, what is all this bullshit about all of these other deaths? That can be reported too but it is only addressed as questions. Reporters are supposed to get this data and report it. If it can be shown as a counter-trend to other trends, then that can be effectively used as a argument or illustration. But to say that a decline in US military deaths is only part of the story does not mean that it isn't newsworthy.

Why do these clowns even have jobs?