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Saturday, May 10, 2008 12:00 AM

How the military analyst program controlled news coverage: in the Pentagon's own words

"We develop a core group from within our media analyst list of those that we can count on to carry our water. They become the key go to guys for the networks and it begins to weed out the less reliably friendly analysts by the networks themselves."

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  • Sunday, May 11, 2008 04:00 PM

    Absolutely correct --

    "The official post-Vietnam line in the army, as taught in service schools (for officers), was articulated first by Col. Harry Summers, who was tasked by the army to write the official 'lessons-learned' document after Vietnam that became a course text, 'On Strategy' (purposefully referring to Clausewitz): it wasn't the media, it wasn't the protestors, it was us, the uniformed military --- 'we' did it to ourselves. . . .

    One wonders in relation to that about the oath: one of the whines was that "Washington tied our hands". Actually, it was the Constitution which "tied the hands" -- with the rule of law.

    Otherwise, much of the media back then trumpeted the gov't line. And the protesters were exercising their right of freedom of speech -- which right was purportedly being defended by a military which simultaneously opposed use of that right in ways in which the military disapproved.

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