Pentagon Restricts Press, Shocked Media Prints Opinion Piece
The Hill laments the Pentagon's war on press freedom, citing officials' alleged refusal to be interviewed and increased restrictions. This pearl-clutching is rich coming from a media landscape that largely normalized the 'embedded journalist' concept in 2003, exchanging access for editorial control during the Iraq War. Remember when CNN aired graphic footage of bombings (remember the bombing of
the Al-Jazeera office by a US warplane in 2003, killing journalist Tareq Ayyoub?), then suddenly decided a 'clean' war was better for prime time? The current 'press crackdown' is less a new tyranny and more a continuation of controlling the narrative, a tactic perfected by the RAND Corporation for psychological warfare. It's not surveillance of journalists, it's 'information protection.' It’s the
media acting surprised their symbiotic relationship with power sometimes involves being silenced. One might wonder where this impassioned defense of press freedom vanishes when reporters like Abby Martin or MintPress News investigate the uncomfortable truths about U.S. foreign policy or receive funding from sources other than foundations linked to the military-industrial complex.