UPDATED - ColdType

destruction.
“Fox News and the Jerusalem Post, which had
a reporter traveling with U.S. troops, both quote
unidentified Pentagon officials who said the facility
was seized by U.S. forces. About 30 Iraqi
troops and their commanding general surrendered
as American forces took the installation,
apparently used to produce chemical weapons,
according to the Jerusalem Post. It was not
immediately clear what chemicals were being
produced at the facility. Officials caution it is too
premature to conclude that forbidden weapons
had been discovered but U.S. central command
says it is examining several sites of interest.
“Monday, March 24, 2.42 a.m. General Richard
Myers, Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff, claims
U.S. commandos found documents along with
millions of rounds of ammunition on Saturday,
saying the discovery “might save thousands of
lives if we can find out exactly what they have.”
“We’re not sure”
MONDAY, March 24, 2.44 p.m. General Tommy
Franks, head of the coalition forces, claims he
“wasn’t entirely sure” that it was a chemical factory
after all. Fox News forced to back away from
the story. Iraq denies it has chemical or biological
weapons. Etc.
White House wants
to dominate coverage
EMBEDDED: WEAPONS OF MASS DECEPTION
EVEN as the administration seems to be getting
a free ride, it is planning to step up its PR offensive.
Douglas Quenqua reports in PR Week,
“The eruption of war in Iraq last week set in
motion a massive global PR network, cultivated
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by the Bush administration during the monthslong
buildup of forces. The network is intended
not only to disseminate, but also to dominate
news of the conflict around the world.
“Before the attacks began, Suzy DeFrancis,
deputy assistant to President Bush for communications,
outlined the daily media relations hand-off
that was about to begin. ‘When Americans wake
up in the morning, they will first hear from the
(Persian Gulf) region, maybe from General Tommy
Franks,’ she said. ‘Then later in the day, they’ll hear
from the Pentagon, then the State Department,
then later on the White House will brief.’
“The OGC, an office born out of post-September-11
efforts to combat anti-American news stories
emerging from Arab countries, will be key in
keeping all U.S. spokespeople on message. Each
night, U.S. embassies around the world, along
with all federal departments in DC, will receive a
‘Global Messenger’ email containing talking
points and ready-to-use quotes. While an obvious
benefit to having communicators spread
across time zones is the ability to dominate the
24-hour news cycle.”
We are under bombardment
WHAT is the effect of all this? I was struck by a
cogent critique on a blog called Dave’s Web:
“After immersing myself for several days in the
world of cable ‘news’ – an activity that I usually
avoid at all costs – I have come to the conclusion
that anyone who can watch this parade of fools
and not know that they are being lied to has to
be a few Freedom Fries short of a Happy Meal.
“A pattern to the coverage of the Iraq war is
ridiculously easy to discern: first, a recklessly
transparent lie is told; then, it is repeated end-