US Assassinating Journalists in Iraq?
What? I had not intended these posts to be political in nature but politics is part of life regardless of how we feel about them.

So why the subject above? Several weeks a go a senior CNN executive was forced to resign after making a comment in Davos, Switzerland during the World Economic Conference that US troops were targeting, with intent to kill, journalists in Iraq. Eason Jordan, as CNN's Chief News Executive, was a senior architect of CNN's coverage of world events with an emphasis on conflicts.

According to Wikipedia he has been the recipient of two Emmy Awards, two Peabody Awards and the DuPont-Columbia Award.

A report on the well respected UK Guardian website by Claire Cozens on November 19, 2004 reported that the US military was 'still failing to protect journalists in Iraq'.

Many media outlets reported on the Jordan controversy, such as the Washington Post article on February 8, 2005. Although this has not been seen as major point of discussion on mainstream media, the world of blogs is what done in Mr. Jordan.

A particularly vitriolic, self-serving blog called EASONGATE helped drive the resignation of Jordan. Blogs are powerful tools that can educate and entertain with an immediacy that traditional media may not. Where traditional media tends to broadcast to many, blogs narrowcast. This is an interesting development. Although print media has targeted groups through special interest publications for many years, blogs further define a point of view, often reinforcing a perspective held by an individual.

Once many like minded individuals agree (no matter whether 'right' or 'wrong') a howling cacophony can ensue. The result? Mob mentality.

In the past this has resulted in revolutions, lynchings and now, apparently, resignations of talented, respected journalists; or maybe anyone that uses their right of free speech?

Rather than investigate the allegations of abuse, many blogs focused on Jordan and certain press organizations (read CNN/NPR and the rest of the liberal, Clinton loving, pro-choice anti-Christ biased media) and how he and they are bastions of a left-wing/Democratic (big D)/communist conspiracy to subvert the current US administration. Another example of the divisions in America between Blue and Red states, right and wrong and with us or against us politics. Another example of how the right wing in the US are better at defining subjects their way than the Democrats. Death tax not Estate tax. In England, Margaret Thatcher was castigated (and defeated) for the Pole Tax, as defined by the left wing in that case.

Although Jordan back-peddled on his comments and later resigned, this weekends story of Giuliana Sgrena, the Italian journalist wounded after being released by her captors in Iraq may add a jolt of truth to Jordan's comments.

Nicola Calipari, the 50-year-old security agent assigned to protect her died when he threw himself when the bullets flew. Two other members of the Italian secret service in the car were also wounded.

Sgrena reported for the left-wing/communist newspaper Il Manifesto (poorly translated to English by google).

The US administration has criticised European organizations and governments who negotiate the release of hostages with insurgents in Iraq (Personally I agree; you cannot give in to terrorism, no matter how painful). Could they be sending a message here?

So, two perspectives in one post. Feel free to comment, afterall, it is your God given right to have a point of view, even if it is driven by evil-empire hating free-speech revisionists. Wait! Who are we talking about here?

Watch this space. You may have heard it here first.