It's a tough sell when you can't lie very well.

posted by Bill Arnett @ 10:01 AM Permalink

By now probably everyone has heard bush complain that al-Qaeda's propaganda machine was responsible for the lack of public support here in America for the bush Iraqi War (and this coming from a guy spending almost $3-billion a year for propaganda).

But it's a tough sell when the military just cannot lie very well. See this article from USATODAY.com for a prime example:

The U.S. military says it has captured at least six al-Qaeda media centers in Iraq and arrested 20 suspected propaganda leaders since June.

The seizures of the centers underscore the importance al-Qaeda has placed on media, primarily the Internet, as a tool to communicate to its members and use against U.S. forces in Iraq. The group's media emphasis continues to increase, intelligence analysts say.[…]

The progress against al-Qaeda's media operations stems from new offensives aimed at al-Qaeda sanctuaries and an emphasis on blunting the terrorist group's extensive propaganda operations, U.S. officers say.

"One of our goals is to target these propaganda networks, and we've had more success over the past three months," says Air Force Col. Donald Bacon, a staff officer at Multi-National Force-Iraq.

This seems all well and good until you bother to read the entire article, where it later states:

Al-Qaeda's media output in Iraq dipped starting five or six weeks ago, Katz says, but it has since recovered.

Ain't it weird how they can brag in one breath about how many media centers they've busted and how much damage they've done to al-Qaeda and then note that al-Qaeda has already recovered?

Methinks I smell some bush military propaganda.

Labels: Bush, disinformation, Iraq war, military, propaganda