Michael Ware: "People are around them," warns the sniper's spotter, who seems to be operating the video camera.
"Want me to find another place?"
"No, no," comes the reply. "Give me a moment."[1]
Later, the same reporter notes:
Here, the spotter warns the shooter he only sees Iraqis, until he's sure he's identified an American."[2]
Notice that what is happening here is that the insurgents have used the tapes to make an argument about themselves, and CNN passes the argument on uncritically, without comment or critique. Yet, in fact, nothing could be further from the truth. These groups all employ the tactic of using suicide bombers to generate spectacular media events, (certainly this particular group, the Islamic Army of Iraq, has, and has been cited as "nearly as violent as Zarqawi's al-Qaeda in Iraq."[3] They are also, remember, the group that claimed responsibility for murdering in cold blood the sole survivor of that Bulgarian helicopter—and filming the act.) The surest way to make a bombing spectacular enough to attract media attention is to cause as many casualties as possible.[4] After all, on a typical news day, a typical suicide bombing may or may not be singled out on the nightly news for something more than a quick mention. And there is never a guarantee that the visuals for any particular suicide bombing will make it onto the nightly news on any given evening.[5] Notice that the prior practices of the group that provided the tapes, their percentages of sniper attacks versus bombings, are not treated as relevant to the story in any event: for CNN these
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- ↑ Anderson Cooper 360, CNN, October 18, 2006.
- ↑ Anderson Cooper 360, CNN, October 18, 2006.
- ↑ Sally Buzbee, "Zarqawi said to be sidelined by new 'coalition of insurgents'," The Age, Australia, April 5, 2006, p. 13, available from Lexis-Nexis Academic. They have also taken civilian hostages. See Stephen Farrell and Charles Bremner, The Times, London, September 1, 2004, p. 1, available from Lexis-Nexis Academic.
- ↑ Although that is not the only way and it is, to be sure, not a guarantee. See Dauber, "The Terrorist Spectacular."
- ↑ For a discussion of the criteria that will determine whether a particular bombing will make the news, and, if so, how much attention it is likely to receive, see Dauber, "Terrorist Spectacular."
