War / Peace

U.S. Think Tank Calls for More Troops, More Propaganda

by Diane Farsetta — May 18, 2007 - 5:31pm

"A new security study released by the Third Way, a Democratic-leaning think tank," and authored by two former Clinton administration officials, discusses how to rebuild U.S. credibility overseas.

Main Source: 
The Hill, May 18, 2007

Congress to Pentagon: Can I Get a Witness?

by Diane Farsetta — May 15, 2007 - 12:56pm

In a move criticized as a "blatant attempt to bog down investigations of the [Iraq] war," a Defense Department official has issued guidelines that "prohibit most officers below the rank of colonel from appearing in [Congressional] hearings, restricting testimony to high-ranking officers and civilians appointed by President Bush." The guidelines were written

Main Source: 
Boston Globe, May 10, 2007

Herr Stauber In Der Spiegel

by Judith Siers-Poisson — May 15, 2007 - 8:35am
  • Topics: Iraq, Global Warming, Environment, International, Propaganda, Public Relations, U.S. Government, War / Peace

    • CMD Founder and Executive Director John Stauber has been in Germany, Austria and Belgium for the past two weeks speaking in major cities and discussing the publication of "Toxic Sludge Is Good For You" in German. On May 16 Vienna's daily paper Der Standard ran an interview with Herr Stauber that can be read in German by searching his name on their website. He was previously interviewed by Nils Klawitter for the German magazine Der Spiegel, and a translated portion of the interview is below. (Thanks to Orange-Press, publishers of the German edition of Toxic Sludge Is Good for You, for the translation.) If you would like to read the German interview in its entirety, please go to: http://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/0,1518,481658,00.html

    War vs. Democracy: Untold Stories from the Lynch / Tillman Hearing

    by Diane Farsetta — May 11, 2007 - 9:50am
  • Topics: Journalism, Democracy, Human Rights, International, Propaganda, U.S. Government, War / Peace

    • What does it mean to be a nation at war? Is it possible to exercise democratic control over a wartime government that dismisses honest criticism as unpatriotic? What should citizens do when members of their military not only commit crimes -- as happens during every war -- but also rely on propaganda to hide mistakes and to embellish or even create victories, as happened in the cases of Army Ranger Pat Tillman and Private Jessica Lynch?


    Jessica Lynch testifies

    Those are big questions, but a few things are clear. One is that the secrecy, deception and constraints sought by wartime administrations are anathema to the transparency, accountability and freedom necessary to democracy. As James Madison warned, "Of all the enemies of public liberty, war is perhaps the most to be dreaded, because it comprises and develops the germ of every other."

    Another truism is that citizens retain the right to receive information and provide guidance to their government during wartime. The last is that, while security concerns may legitimately restrict what information can be shared when, maintaining civilian oversight of war operations helps ensure that human rights standards are upheld.

    Perhaps the most important effort to provide oversight of ongoing U.S. wars was the April 24 Congressional hearing on battlefield misinformation.

    Sorry About That

    by Sheldon Rampton — May 9, 2007 - 9:32am

    In March, U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan opened fire indiscriminately on civilian bystanders following a militant ambush in Jalalabad. Soldiers then destroyed photos and video taken at the scene by freelance journalists. Destroying the evidence was necessary, a military official claimed at the time, to protect "investigative integrity" and prevent "public conclusions" from being "falsely made." Yesterday, however, the U.S.

    Main Source: 
    New York Times, May 8, 2007

    "Mission Accomplished," Four Years Later

    by Robin Andersen — May 1, 2007 - 5:40pm
  • Topics: Journalism, International, Propaganda, Secrecy, U.S. Government, War / Peace

    • Today marks the fourth anniversary of the Bush administration's now-infamous photo op when Bush landed in a fighter jet on the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln and declared "mission accomplished" in Iraq. His speech was one of many publicity stunts and media manipulations used to sell a fantasy war whose real and very tragic consequences are still being felt.

    Investigating the First Casualty of War, in Afghanistan and Iraq

    by Diane Farsetta — April 20, 2007 - 1:39pm

    "Within hours of Pat Tillman's death, the Army went into information-lockdown mode, cutting off phone and Internet connections at a base in Afghanistan, posting guards on a wounded platoon mate, and ordering a sergeant to burn Tillman's uniform," reports Scott Lindlaw.

    Main Source: 
    Associated Press, April 20, 2007

    Onward, Free Market Soldiers: Privatizing Public Diplomacy

    by Diane Farsetta — April 18, 2007 - 9:48am
  • Topics: Public Diplomacy, Corporations, International, Public Relations, U.S. Government, War / Peace

    • U.S. Under Secretary of State Karen Hughes' remarks at the "Private Sector Summit on Public Diplomacy" opened on a militaristic note. "Looking around the room and seeing the quality and the scope of the talent represented here," she said, "I feel like reinforcements have arrived."

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