Newsweek retracts story on Koran desecration

[Darryl Cramer]

This is awful. As much as I love to bash the Right, and they certainly deserve it, I cannot find any excuses for this: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=615&e=1&u=/nm/20050516/pl_nm/religion_koran_dc">Newsweek retracts story on Koran desecration. This is incredibly frustrating and they ought to be ashamed. Sure the Right and the WH are going to have a field day with this one, much like they did with Dan Rather, but who can blame them? Anyone who believes in principal will be massively dissappointed by this. Thoughts?

[NVMojo]

1. there are so many different possible angles to this, just like the other

news smear ....

[jobycom]

2. Newsweek should now call for Bush to retract his invasion, also based

on flawed (just pretend for a minute Bush really didn't fix the evidence) sources.

[Darryl Cramer]

5. We already know that

Everyone with a brain already knows that. But you can't take the high road if you sink to the level of your opposition. As a respected source of journalism, it's even worse! Bush hasn't had any credibility for a long time. It would be awful if Newsweek loses its as well.

[Name removed]

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[jobycom]

24. Oh, I don't know

Surely someone is fooled somewhere...

[Beetwasher]

LOL!

Indeed! :hi:

[jobycom]

13. If everyone with a brain already knows that, why isn't it a story?

Newsweek and the media in general COULD use this issue to make a point to the majority of Americans that the entire invasion was based, at best, on bad intelligence, and at worse, on a lie. The White House is complaining that Newsweek did not investigate its sources closely enough, and therefore dozens may have lost their lives because of it. SOMEONE, in fact, EVERYONE, in the media should be screaming that Bush killed hundreds of thousands of people based on his mistake.

I never said Newsweek should retract their story. I'm saying that the far bigger story, the far greater atrocity, is still under the rug, where they media swept it. The media could use this incident to pull the rug back.

As for hihgh road/low road nonsense, I don't care what road is taken, Bush needs to be exposed as the murderer and traitor he is. I would rather think of the president as having to take the high road than one news magazine having to take it. If Newsweek wants to use sloppy journalism, they'll just fall to the ranks of a tabloid, and we'll look elsewhere for our news. We only get one president at a time, and it's about time that someone held this one accountable, using whichever road gets us there.

[Renew Deal]

3. This whole situation stinks.

I think Newsday was pressured. The argument is simple. How many people are you willing to kill over your story, true or false?

[Larkspur]

4. How many of you believe that the WH pressured Newsweek to retract

the "Koran in the toliet" story as a tactic to distract from the Downing Street Memo and sow seeds of doubt about that British story that could lead to impeachment or at least to Repukes in Congress being canned by the voters in 2006?

I do.

[Darryl Cramer]

6. It doesn't matter...

if the WH pressured Newsweek or not. That's absolutely in their right to do so. Shame on Newsweek for not have the sources to back up their claim. Their handing the WH a big present with this one. (There's a rediculous conspiracy theory for you.)

[Name removed]

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[Darryl Cramer]

11. Direct your anger at the appropiate target

You need to hold to Left accountable to the same standards that you undoubedly use to berate the Right. Journalists have a job to do, and they're getting worse and worse at, which is unfortunate for everyone. If they had the sources they wouldn't have retracted the story. If they didn't have them, then they never should have printed it in the first place, even if it is true. That's journalism 101.

[Beetwasher]

12. You Wouldn't Know Journalism 101 If It Was Shoved Down Your Throat

What a load of crap.

"If they had the sources they wouldn't have retracted the story."

LOL! Really? That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard. The story was true and there are MULTIPLE reports of it happening over a span of years. Duh.

This attack on NW is propoganda pure and simple and part of a deliberate strategy aimed at discrediting and then controlling and censoring the press. But you already knew that and you support it which is why you're peddling your crap.

[Darryl Cramer]

14. So why did they retract?

Then perhaps you can explain why they retracted the story, since you're so smart?

[Beetwasher]

15. It's Obvious, The WH Pressured and Threatened Them

Like they do to everyone. They caved.

Who knows what threats they used? It wouldn't surprise me if they threatened Isikoff's family.

[Name removed]

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[Darryl Cramer]

26. Of course I've heard

And I'll also point out that those stories have not been retracted because they were substantiated and corroborated, as all good journalism should be.

[Beetwasher]

28. Uhh, Did You READ The "Retraction"???

Did you read the other posts on this? With ALL THE SOURCES SUPPORTING THE STORY????

Really. Educate yourself before you continue making an utter and complete fool of yourself. The story is undoubtedly TRUE. The only shame on NW is the their retraction and caving to the WH pressure.

[jobycom]

29. Also substantiated and corroborated were the stories that

The WHite House required the press corp with access to the president to submit their stories to the White House for approval before being published. So the White House has been proven to put pressure on the press.

[Renew Deal]

31. Darryl, you might want to see this.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x3668003

[jobycom]

23. I don't think you know what the retraction was about...

They didn't retract that our guys were desecrating the Qur'an, they retracted that they had a source who witnessed the Qur'an being flushed down the toilet. Much like the whole CBS deal, the story was true, but their source on one point was called into question. This is a typical Rove tactic. He did the same thing to James Hatfield, who wrote Fortunate Son, back in 2000. Rather than disproving one single point of the book, he simply proved that Hatfield has lied about his personal history, and had the book withdrawn from the shelves for that reason.

For the record, James Hatfield later committed suicide when Bush's justice department trumped up an income tax violation and was threatening to send him back to prison and bankrupt his family. Once Hatfield killed himself, his family was left alone.

It's classic Rove. I could tell you some stories about that dog down here in Texas...

[Green Mountain Dem]

27. Wow....

where have you been the past few years...there are NO journalists left in our media. There are just high paid messengers employed by Corporate America saying, and writing what they are told by their masters. This is just another set-up, ala Rove and friends, to divert attention from "the impeachment memo"

[K-W]

7. They certainly did. I have no doubt in my mind. EOM

[ReadTomPaine]

10. Pretty simple. A White House threat has them running scared.

This story has multiple sources and is years old. It is, quite simply, true. Newsweek is rolling due to pressure from Bush. A blind man could see this with a cane and it's just SOP for this Administration (reference Rather).

Newsweek probably would never have been permitted to run this story if their GOP minders had any idea it would have turned out to be the political hot button it is.

[Darryl Cramer]

16. Why would a news organization roll over from WH pressure?

Bernstein and Woodward never did.

[Beetwasher]

19. Are You Kidding? What Planet Have You Been Living On?

Seriously. 6 giant corporations own most of the media in this country. The US intentionally targets and KILLS journalists. They are not above using threats, intimidation etc. to get what they want.

[Renew Deal]

20. The Bernstein and Woodward days are long gone.

The question is what does Bushco have on Newsweek as well as the argument I presented earlier.

[Darryl Cramer]

22. Sadly, I think you're right. [eom]

[Name removed]

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[K-W]

30. It is a pentagon lie. That is the key.

The pentagon changed thier story to newsweek forcing newsweek to retract their claims about pentagon documents.

Certainly that was followed by white house pressure, but the reason newsweek couldnt stand up against pressure was that it couldnt fall back on the pentagon who changed its story.

[Chicago Democrat]

25. I think it actually happened.

The sources are multiple and this was standard practice. (My opinion) I don't see the Rove angle.

[unhappycamper]

32. From CNN's front page

I grabbed this off CNN's front page lest the picture disappear. Nice picture, eh? Any of you Photoshop experts care to comment?


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