Did Press "Enable" Run-Up To War? Couric, McLellan, Yellin Say Yes

New York Times:

In his new memoir, "What Happened," Scott McClellan, the former White House press secretary, said the national news media neglected their watchdog role in the run-up to the invasion of Iraq, calling reporters "complicit enablers" of the Bush administration's push for war.

Surprisingly, some prominent journalists have agreed.

Katie Couric, the anchor of "CBS Evening News," said on Wednesday that she had felt pressure from government officials and corporate executives to cast the war in a positive light.

Speaking on "The Early Show" on CBS, Ms. Couric said the lack of skepticism shown by journalists about the Bush administration's case for war amounted to "one of the most embarrassing chapters in American journalism." She also said she sensed pressure from "the corporations who own where we work and from the government itself to really squash any kind of dissent or any kind of questioning of it." At the time, Ms. Couric was a host of "Today" on NBC.

Another broadcast journalist also weighed in. Jessica Yellin, who worked for MSNBC in 2003 and now reports for CNN, said on Wednesday that journalists had been "under enormous pressure from corporate executives, frankly, to make sure that this was a war presented in a way that was consistent with the patriotic fever in the nation."

Read the whole story: New York Times

Comments

[blackjack]

Until the people get the guts to brake up the CORAPORATE CONTROLED MEDIA this is going to happen again,and again not only in war but look at what they have done on other inportantent storys if it is against there interest they will spin to there brnfit.

[Terminal1]

Seems the Fourth Estate has been living in a bubble of their own...

[Gericault]

The Fourth Estate has been conquered long ago. I've just never seen it quite manipulated like this.

The last time it was this obvious was the Aids epidemic and the tainting of the blood supply. No major news network would cover the story and Reagan didn't even mention Aids until thousands had died.

Remember Legionairres disease? A couple of fat white guys get sick at a Holiday Inn and it's a nation wide panic but did the MSM carry anything about HIV and Aids. Not until it was a full blown epidemic.

Long live the internet.

[pmorlan]

Was Press a War ‘Enabler’? 2 Offer a Nod From Inside
By BRIAN STELTER
"In his new memoir, “What Happened,” Scott McClellan, the former White House press secretary, said the national news media neglected their watchdog role in the run-up to the invasion of Iraq, calling reporters “complicit enablers” of the Bush administration’s push for war.

Surprisingly, some prominent journalists have agreed. "

I wonder what Mr. Stelter meant by "surprisingly"? Did he mean that it was surprising that these journalists would admit the truth or did he mean that he was surprised that they agreed? I wouldn't be "surprised" if it was the latter.

[raker]

"Enabled" is too benign a word. The press cleared away obstacles and actively promoted Bush's obviously dishonest sales job. After all, war - however loosely the word is used, and it's been used very loosely to describe the occupation of Iraq - is big business for news operations. It's also a career-maker for reporters who trade on their war correspondent experience the rest of their lives. Ultimately, the fault lies with the millions of people who take what they hear and read in the press as gospel. The press can't deceive us unless we willingly agree to be deceived.

[kirsti]

Press caved in. Afraid of O'Reilly and Hannity!

"Not a patriot!" they would scream. Who in the hell would have terrible words like that thrown against them?

Freedom fries and all. Why is it so difficult to ridicule these guys?

Nobody ever was able to. And that's a mystery, Look what they were able to do to Dixie Chicks.!

D C was left with no defence...­......

Where was the people who had a voice..

[noneIn2008]

Of course media helped, as did congress and the executive branch. But, it is not that they yielded to pressure, instead they created the pressure. The media was hyping and pandering to the movement as they always do - following the winds. Are they saying none of them had any backbone? "My friends forced me to rob the liquor store, I didn't want to, but they pressured me to rob it, so I'm innocent."
No, they were all willing participants. They consciously decided to hype the war for ratings and advertising.

[Bigbrain]

Is this even a serious question? Haven't most people known the answer to this question for YEARS???? Is the press JUST figuring this out? Maybe they should care less and spend less time on their hair and which tie they wear on-air and a little more time doing what the press is supposed to do....FACT CHECKING BEFORE REPORTING.

My god....thi­s quesion now, is kind of like beating a dead horse. Plus, does ANYONE take the press seriously anymore? I know I used to but things have REALLY fallen apart.

[amst]

If only they'd read comments like these and take heed. Some of us have felt so helpless knowing the likelihood of so many cover-ups/crimes and there is absolutely nothing we can do. You can only write so many letters, make so many calls. The people don't have any say, they just send their young men and women to war trusting our government. Afterall, they don't need to be held accountable, even the media thinks so.

[nunzia]

Since Bushco started this phoney illegal war, from time to time the media have one of their conferences or seminars and c-span airs it. Almost every one I've seen has pretended to seriously discuss the role of the press in the runup to the war. And EVERY TIME they absolve themselves, declare their innocence, celebrate their integrity, pat themselves on the back and rest content in the knowledge that they did no wrong and need no improvement.
Disgusting bunch of self-serving mediah-crity.

[jukesgrrl]

And while that's quite true, it's TOO nice an assessment of the ones who danced with Rove at the Gridiron dinner.

[anastasiabeaverhousen]

Now they acknowledge the 4,000 pound elephant that's been in the room for the past 5 years as a "perhaps we screwed up"? Give me a fucking break.

[amst]

True, and they can hear the criticisms of "them" and say "it's not so" and that's the end of story. Nobody holds them accountable. I suppose the only way for the people to do that is to never listen to any news channels or buy and newspapers, but how much sense does that make?? Someone has to keep on eye on things, since the media isn't and God knows the White House isn't.

[nunzia]

Here's an answer: they're NOT news channels. Endless prattle about the horse race is NOT news information. You aren't learning, on those channels, anything at all about the destruction caused by the war, the lives destroyed here and in Iraq, the economy in the toilet, the millions without health care or homeless, jobless. You aren't hearing about that on those channels. You're watching vapid, empty soul-less snobs pontificate and argue about who's up, who's down, who's winning and why, who's losing and how. And every now and then, that's interrupted by "breaking news" about a fire, a crash, an accident.
You are NOT keeping an eye on things when you watch that crap.

[Bigbrain]

amen

[bobo209]

Corporate press under the zionist control will be used against the ayyrabs..

Number of U.S. Military Personnel Sacrificed (Officially acknowledged) In U.S. War And Occupation Of Iraq 4,084


Cost of U.S. War and Occupation of Iraq

$524,380,494,845

The blame cannot be shifted solely onto the shoulders of our political leaders. The American people cannot claim that they were “misled” by their leaders and don’t know the truth.

The mainstream media has failed in its responsibility to accurately report the truth, still, the American people have known of its duplicity for years now. The propaganda and outright distortion of the truth has been part and parcel of just about every major network in the United States. The majority of Americans realize that they have been lied to and deceived for a long time. I believe however, that most Americans know how to find the truth behind the lies. There are many independent news sources outside the MSM. The truth as I see it, is that most Americans don’t really want to hear or see the truth. The truth puts responsibility into the hands of the people. Responsibility for the actions of their leaders and the conduct of their government is not palatable to most Americans.

There are many writers and pundits that constantly compare the American people to sheep. Anyone that has read political articles on the internet or in magazines has heard of the word “sheeple”.

[Tommygun264]

Dan Rather must be laughing his ass off!

[amst]

Tommy,

Dan Rather is an excellent example. Here, Tom had paperwork regarding Bush's bogus National Guard service. While the papers he had were said not to be the "original" NOBODY disputed that the info wasn't the truth. The Media, had they the balls, should have gotten down and dirty doing the footwork and finding out the truth. Instead, they all joined in a horrible bashing of Rather. To this day, I think Rather got the royal shaft. Good point. NOBODY dared mess with King George (the idiot in Chief). What pisses me off is if they HAD been doing their jobs from the beginning, looking into and following up on some of these stories we may not have lost all the lives in Iraq, not to mention we may have been spared living throught the Administration from Hell. They are guilty as charged.

[incontempt]

Bill Maher was quick to get the boot too

[ljwaldron]

Did the press enable the war - YES!

Did you fall for it? That's a bigger question.

[OliverTwist]

No. But I had special expertise which allowed me to see through some of the BS.

[qdog112]

Of course the press was complicit in the run up to war. They beat the war drums the whole way.

If there is any doubt - youtube should be out in full force to remind everyone.

I AM PUZZLED THAT THEY ARE NOT PLAYING VIDEO CLIPS AROUND THE CLOCK SHOWING THE TRUTH.