The Lies Continue: US Media and the War in Iraq…and Iran?

On February 5th, 2003 Colin Powell made the presentation at the United Nations that for many people ended their doubts about whether or not Iraq had weapons of mass destruction or ties to international terrorism. A review of the major US media the next day reveals what impact Powell’s speech made on the information gate keepers in the US.

In their book The Best War Ever, authors John Stauber and Sheldon Rampton provide excerpts from 8 major US newspapers in responding to Powell’s “speech.” The New York Times reporter Michael Gordon stated “it will be difficult for skeptics to argue that Washington’s case against Iraq is based on groundless suspicions and not intelligence information.” The Dallas Morning News said that, “Powell did everything but perform cornea transplants on the countries that still claim to see no reason for forcibly disarming Iraq.” Even the Washington Post added that, “it is hard to imagine how anyone could doubt that Iraq possesses weapons of mass destruction.” Those of us who had been working on an anti-invasion campaign before the war, were contacted by channels 13 and 17 in Grand Rapids for our reaction to Powell’s speech. Even they were pretty much convinced by the claims made by the then Secretary of State.

However, there was one problem with what the national and local media was saying that day and pretty much everyday since then…they never bothered to verify the claims made by Powell, Bush, Cheney, Rice and all other administration spokespersons on the claims made against Iraq. It’s called journalism folks. When people in power make claims journalists are suppose to ask silly questions like “what are they basing these claims on?” or “lets ask another source about these WMDs.” The major US news media pretty much acted like lapdogs four years ago instead of watchdogs. Had the news media actually performed like journalists the US public might never have gone along with this illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq. The truth of the matter is that the US is at war with Iraq in part because of the news media’s complicity and lack of investigative journalism. The consequences of this war against Iraq has meant what? Well here is a short list of things to think about.

First, lots of people are dead. We all know about the now 3,000 plus US soldiers who have died, but little has been said about the thousands of soldiers who are permanently wounded and traumatized. We hear even less about Iraqi casualties. According to the British journal The Lancet, the estimates of Iraqi deaths is over 650,000. Second, the Iraqi economy and infrastructure are devastated. Fewer Iraqis have access to clean water and electricity than during the rule of Saddam Hussein. The US under the leadership of Paul Bremer re-wrote the Iraqi constitution so that all of the oil, banks and major businesses could be owned by foreign investors. Billions of US tax dollars are not only paying for the murder to be done in our name, but huge chunks of that money are going to companies like Halliburton and Blackwater Associates – private companies who are sticking it to US taxpayers and the Iraqis. The National Priorities Project estimates that it is costing about $2 billion a day to prosecute this war and occupation. Well, look around…we sure could use that money to fund our schools, fix the damn roads, improve the mass transit, clean up the environment, provide descent housing for people, etc. But hey this is all in order to liberate the people of Iraq, right? Third, an increasing number of the world’s population has put the US at the top of their shit list. If the US was serious about preventing acts of terrorism committed against this country, they might want to reconsider the current course of action in Iraq.

Let’s face it folks the media has played a major role in letting the current administration get away with brutalizing the people of Iraq. The major news media in this country instead of just reporting on the latest area soldier who has been killed in Iraq, should get on their fucking knees and ask forgiveness to these military families for contributing to the lie of this war. I mean, I wanna see Lee Van Amyde and Suzanne Geha and the rest of these local media people publicly apologize for not doing their job and holding the government accountable for the reasons they gave in starting a war. Well this isn’t likely to happen. Instead the news media now is not only not questioning the ongoing occupation of Iraq and Bush call for a “surge” in US troops, they are going right along with the administration in beating the drums of war against Iran.

Well, in the prophetic words of that infamous 80s hair band Twisted Sister…we’re not gonna take it any more! In order to challenge the media’s role in its failure to question the war policy, we are kicking off a campaign that will do the following:

1) Pressure the local news media to improve its coverage of the war in Iraq – this campaign will begin by having people come to the Grand Rapids Press on Feb. 28 and WOOD TV 8 on March 1st to demand a formal apology for not questioning the US government’s reasons for going to war. We will also have a list of recommendations for future war coverage. Seeing that most of you will read this after those dates call them up and ask them if they plan to do real journalism in the future around the war in Iraq.

2) Support the effort to get one of the premier news shows in the country, Democracy Now, on the local PBS station (WGVU) and the community radio station WYCE. If more people had access to the kind of journalism practiced by Democracy Now! reporters and the information/perspectives they provide there would be a decent alternative to the right wing syndicated talk radio that currently dominates the greater Grand Rapids area. People can download the petition or support bringing Democracy Now! by signing the petition online.

We need to create more independent media. We encourage people to visit the Media Mouse website at www.mediamouse.org, contribute articles or get involved in research projects. Start your own project. Make a zine, a newspaper, a blog, a video to post on You Tube. Do something, and don’t let the bastards get you down.

Jeff Smith is a contributor to Media Mouse and can be contacted online

Related Posts:

1. Commentary: The Lies Continue – US Media and the War in Iraq…and Iran?
2. The Best War Ever: Lies, Damned Lies, and the Mess in Iraq
3. GRIID Media Alert: Local Media Continue to Selectively “Balance” Anti-war Voices
4. US Media and the War in Iraq
5. Media Failed to Examine Bush’s Lies when he gave a Grand Rapids Speech on Iraq in 2003