Saturday, November 11, 2006

The Media as Echo Chamber for Propaganda?

The media has been reporting that Al Qaeda has issued statements mocking President Bush and praising American voters for making a "reasonable" choice in this week's election.

I hope no one will think this is "evidence" that terrorists are on the Democrats' side. Let's use our heads here. The terrorists' statements are propaganda. They would love to help divide Americans.

Media reports have failed to make this observation. Instead, they uncritically report the terrorists' statement, helping spread the propaganda.

The reality is all Americans want to bring terrorists to justice. Some of us are frustrated, to say the least, that troops were diverted from Afghanistan (where Al Qaeda and Bin Laden were located) to Iraq (where Al Qaeda and Bin Laden were not).

I'm not saying the media shouldn't report on terrorist propaganda. I am hoping that next time they will infuse their reports with some skepticism, or thoughtful commentary, or both.

Serving as a echo chamber for terrorist propaganda is beneath our media. They can do better.

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