Thursday, October 26, 2006

In the interest of enlightenment and balance

Let's send Tim Graham to live the life of a reporter in Iraq:

The Agenda-free Pacifist? [Tim Graham]

Thursday's Howard Kurtz Washington Post puff piece on NBC Baghdad correspondent Richard Engel has a real clash of perspectives. First, NBC anchor Brian Williams claimed Engel "is the most agenda-less person I've met in our business." Then Engel declared "I think war should be illegal...I'm basically a pacifist." Williams also loves Engel’s courage, that he’s “completely unbothered by any Web site that may have problems with his reporting while he's over in Iraq dodging bullets.” Earth to media critics: if a reporter dodges bullets, even propaganda-Pez-dispensers like Peter Arnett (or today, CNN’s Michael Ware), the media elite believes they are unassailable against those pajamas-media types back home.

I believe Richard Engel has been remarkably gloomy from Baghdad (he claims he has no “abacus” to count good news vs. bad news stories.) But the story included no critics of Engel's reporting of any persuasion, just glowing praise from Williams, CBS colleague Lara Logan, and Engel's mother. That’s mighty cozy.
Posted at 2:31 PM


Okay, tough guy. Your belief is based on?....

How about we start up a fund to send you over there to hang out with Michael Ware or Richard Engel and lead the life they live. You tell us your good fucking news of the day...

"Day 5, finally stopped shitting my pants
- Tim Graham"

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