In response to new reports about a $300M Pentagon Psy-Ops program to pay for (ostensibly true) pro-American stories in the foreign press, in Iraq and elsewhere without any disclaimers that the stories were paid.
Let's say, just for the sake of argument, that a few positive stories about American activities in Iraq do indeed result in a small increase in the number of Iraqis who are slightly more favorably disposed to U.S. policies. Do you really expect the average person on the street, angry about their father-in-law who was killed in the invasion, and whose cousin was beaten in Abu Ghraib, and whose neighbor's sister's kid in Fallujah was burned to death by white phosphorous to really give a damn that the Americans opened a school, or got the water running again? Is that person really likely to say "Hey, these Americans are OK after all"?
Now lets look at the other side. Now that this story is out, and people all over the world have heard about it, aren't a vastly larger number of people going to begin to doubt any pro-U.S. stories they might see in their media? Doesn't this sap the credibility of journalism in precisely the places where the idea of an independent press is most vital for the development of democracy?
So what I ask is this. Who the hell thought this was a good idea? And now that the story is out, who the hell thinks it is a good idea to continue the program for another 2 years?!
Just asking.
