I also want to point out what I believe is a responsible report from Iraq and what should serve as a model for reports from stringers. It is a report published by McClatchy Newspapers by a stringer named Mohammad al Awsy:

The daily Iraq violence report is compiled by McClatchy Newspapers Special Correspondent Mohammed al Awsy in Baghdad from police, military and medical reports. This is not a comprehensive list of all violence in Iraq, much of which goes unreported. It’s posted without editing as transmitted to McClatchy’s Washington Bureau.

Baghdad.

– at 3:30 this afternoon mortars fell in AL ZAFARANIYAH area of southern Baghdad at a local market, killing 5 civilians and injuring another 15 .

– at 6 o’clock this evening mortars fell in AL AMIL AREA of western Baghdad, 2 civilians were injured .

– today 12 bodies were found in Baghdad: 2 sadr city, 2 dora, 2 amil, 2 jihad, 2 hurriyah, 1 kadhemiyah, 1 abu atsheer.

Tikrit.

– according to brigadier IEDAN AL JUBORI head of the operation room in naynawa, unknown gunmen opened fire at colonel MIZAHIM YOUNIS, head of criminal investigations in naynawa, killing him and his guard while they were in an unmarked car in al eqtisadieen area north west of mosul city.

– according to a security source from al dour police, Iraqi interior commandos in Samarra city made a raid on ABU KHADO village south of dour town. the source said after that the mosques in the area started saying allahu akbar [god is great] by the mosques loud speakers as a sign to residents to retaliate for the attack.

DIYALA province .

– according to a source from the operation room in diyala province, this afternoon 3 Iraqi army soldiers were killed when they were attacked by unknown gunmen near baqouba’s main market.

Note how sources are named. If they are not named, then the office of the source is named. If neither are named as in the case of the Baghdad Bodies … the districts where they were found were listed. This style of reporting is MUCH more believable (not to mention thsat 12 bodies found in Baghdad with the districts where they were found is much better than 30 to 50 bodies with no information whatsoever) and my hat is off to Mr. al Awsy for a good report.

Bob Woodward ruined his credibility when he said he interviewed William Casey years ago when Casey was on his deathbed. I didn’t believe him then either. No, I don’t believe Gerald Ford told him these remarks. It is definitely not at all in his character. Ford was the only former president who when he left the scene he left the scene. I never heard he ever made a comment about anything and surely Bob Woodward would be the last reporter he would talk to when you consider what went down with Nixon.

Blogs for the most part don’t have the reach, except for local blogs in high profile areas which may have significant restrictions they have to abide with.

The worst case condition here is that the MSM and their newswire providers are totally discredited and ignored.

This would be leaving us blind and dumb to evaluate and consider our opinions no matter what your political persuasion.

It is not an unreasonable request to expect credibility.

I am sure there are some in the MOI that can be quoted as named sources and after that they can be evaluated to see if they are carrying on a “message of choice”.

I don’t want to evolve to a person who is blinded to feel the leg of an elephant to try to decide what it is.

Somehow the response of the media and the AP in particular on this issue seems to say we should all eat cake.

I have never been fond of cake or any deserts.

BAGHDAD – Police found 27 bodies in Baghdad over the past 24 hours, many bearing signs of torture and gunshot wounds, an interior ministry source said.

It is either the “police source” or the “interior ministry source” and yesterday it was both. I suspect the source is, in fact, neither really with the police or the interior ministry.

A named source, or failing that the person’s position/title in the interior ministry / police.

A breakdown as much as known of the locations of the finds. For example, in yesterday’s report of 45 deaths, were they all found together? Were they in groups, individually? What districts were they located in? In other words, something that gives me a little more confidence that this isn’t a number pulled out of thin air by someone calling up a reporter and claiming to be a police or ministry source.

And I note that there has been no Baghdad Body report for January 3 yet.

I’m not going to say that this is a Jemil Hussein case yet, but it would be nice if we could see something thjat we could verify.

12/18/06
12/12/06
12/09/06

….doing research on Jamil Hussein, the supposed source for many AP stories. Since I have access to Lexis-Nexis, I did some research for Curt of Flopping Aces last night (I’m looking forward to his post), and tonight I did some research in support o…

Iraq had an all time record high of $40 billion income from oil production, the number of private businesses in operation is at an all time high … why not interview some of these new business people?

Why not more stories from the 80% of Iraq that isn’t constantly fighting? Maybe more reporting along the lines of this NY Post article.

Their problem (among many) is that they hire terrorists as “stringers” because the Western reporters won’t venture out of the Green Zone. Of course, the terrorists they hire say, “Who, me? Naw, I’m no terrorist! I’m Abdul the news reporter. Trust me!”

It’s getting to the point the terrorists don’t even have to kill anybody. All they have to do is turn in fairy tales to AP, Reuters, et al, claiming X number of mutilated bodies were found. Voilla! It’s headline news.

Slightly off point, but as long as we’re on lying news people: Does anyone else believe that Bob Woodward is a bald-faced liar about his claim that former President Jerry Ford gave him malicious quotes denigrating President Bush and the Iraq War, and told him not to report it until after his (Ford’s) death? I find that whole scenario completely at odds with President Ford’s character. It just doesn’t wash. And Woodward’s penchant for posthumous interviews has long since stretched credulity beyond limits for the most gullible in any kindergarten class.

Is there any reason for this scandal to die out because there’s no indication that AP is going to capitulate and admit that they’re using a source that simply does not exist. The questions are going to remain……

BAGHDAD – Police in Baghdad found the bodies of 45 people, most apparently the victims of death squads, a police source and an Interior Ministry official said.

Usually they source just the unknown Interior Ministry official or the unknown police source … today they source both anonymous sources. Hey, Reuters … zero plus zero still equals zero.

Dan Rather, Peter Jennings, Cokie Roberts, and a tough old U.S. Marine Sergeant were all captured by terrorists in Iraq. The leader of the terrorists told them that he would grant them each one last request before they were beheaded .

Dan Rather said, “Well, I’m a Texan; so I’d like one last bowlful of hot spicy chili.” The leader nodded to an underling who left and returned with the chili. Rather ate it all and said, “Now I can die content.”

Peter Jennings said, “I am Canadian, so I’d like to hear the song “O Canada” one last time.” The leader nodded to a terrorist who had studied the Western world and knew the music. He returned with some rag-tag Musicians and played the anthem. Jennings sighed and declared he could now die peacefully.

Cokie Roberts said, “I’m a reporter to the end. I want to take out my tape recorder and describe the scene here and what’s about to happen. Maybe someday someone will hear it and know that I was on the job till the end.”

The leader directed an aide to hand over the tape recorder and Roberts dictated some comments. She then said, “Now I can die happy.”

The leader turned and said, “And now, Mr. U.S. Marine, what is your final wish?”

“Kick me in the ass,” said the Marine.

“What?” asked the leader? “Will you mock us in your last hour?”

“No, I’m not kidding. I want you to kick me in the ass,” insisted the Marine. So the leader shoved him into the open, and kicked him in the ass.

The Marine went sprawling, but rolled to his knees, pulled a 9 mm pistol from inside his cammies, and shot the leader dead. In the resulting confusion, he leapt to his knapsack, pulled out his M4 carbine and sprayed the Iraqis with gunfire. In a flash, all the Iraqis were either dead or fleeing for their lives.

As the Marine was untying Rather, Jennings, and Roberts, they asked him, “Why didn’t you just shoot them in the beginning? Why did you ask them to kick you in the ass first?”

“What,” replied the Marine, “and have you three Assholes report that I was the aggressor?

Land of the free,
Because of the brave.

SBD