The Press in Iraq

We all have our opinions on how the press is performing as far as reporting the war from Iraq, but Cpt. Dale Dye from KFI 640 am has read a report from Gen. McCaffrey who was sent to Iraq to find what we are doing right, wrong, and everything in between.

It appears that we are not supporting our reporters. We are not informing them on how to stay safe. We are not providing protection. We have to take care of our press so they can be able to tell the whole story. If they are locked up in a hotel room getting information from an unknown Iraqi, that is all they have on which to rely.

It is about time we started to support our press. Maybe we get the negative reporting because they can tell no matter what they report, we are going to complain. How would you feel? Reporters are human, too. Let us start supporting them.

We can do this by calling our Congresspeople toll free at 1-877-762-8762, and we can call President Bush at 1-202-456-1111. Tell them that we want some support for our reporters. They need film. They need protection. We don't need 2nd stringers who don't know how to report a war.

Yes, some of them will still be bad. So what? We should get our Commanders on the air, instead of these arm chair Generals. With all due respect, sir, you are not there.

I know it sounds unusual, but consider it. They are using the media to their advantage! Why shouldn't we? We have much more to be proud of than they. The American people deserve to know what we are doing. Not everyone has a computer, nor do they know where to look.

I look forward to better reporting soon. Thank you.

Update: Captain Dye has been gracious enough to e-mail me the information I may have left out of my article.

Gen McCaffrey indicated that we aren't doing a good enough job getting our brilliant, articulate and understanding battalion, brigade and division commander on TV to tell the other side of the story. That's our fault; not the press. We are also not providing the necessary security and support to reporters that would facilitiate their jobs and thus make them more willing to venture out of the secure hotels to take a look at what we are doing and tell that story. If we want something more than superficial, out-of-context reporting on violence, we are going to have to make it possible and understandable for reporters. Allowing a situation in which they are forced by fear to use Arab stringers of dubious quality, qualification and motivation is a recipe for disaster.

The Captain is a Marine (Ret.). He is on the air from 5-7 pm every Sunday evening. If you do not live in the area, you can listen in on the internet. He is a class act, and a hard one to follow! Thank you, Captain Dye, for your service. Welcome home.