RE: How many dead since May 1?

["Jose G. Perez" <jgperez@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

I would not rely overmuch on CNN on this.

CNN's policy is to report whatever the U.S. military claims. One can, of
course, choose to believe the U.S. military when it says that GI's are
killing themselves off at twice the rate that the Iraqi resistance
fighters who are *trying* to kill them are succeeding in doing so. One
can also choose to believe in God, Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy. 

BTW no special significance --and especially *not* credibility-- should
be attached to a "Baghdad" --or any other-- dateline on the CNN or other
TV-derived online news sites dispatches. That refers to where the
supposed events purportedly being described are alleged to have taken
place, not to the location of the persons telling you the tale. The
writers are, in CNN's case, almost without doubt, across the street from
Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta. Any idea that CNN is telling you it
is so because some member of its mighty army of journalists investigated
it him/herself and can vouch for it is entirely mistaken. The truth is
whatever the government says it is, as especially carefully written
dispatches will make clear to those who understand the journalistic
mind-set because every last adjective in the story is attributed to
someone. 

The concept of "dateline integrity" --so heavily cited in the recent New
York Times scandals-- has yet to make it to the cable news nets. They
just don't function on that basis.

José

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-marxism@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:owner-marxism@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Pieinsky
Sent: Thursday, June 26, 2003 9:34 PM
To: marxism@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: How many dead since May 1?


"The latest American death raised to 59 [blah blah blah]