A Warning on Cablegate
Rachael Maddow reports on misinformation contained in the top secret diplomatic cables that were published by Wikileaks. I thought that all of this went without saying, but it must be remember that the information in the cables are from the point of view of the diplomats who are sending them. As the journalists, bloggers, and activists continue to dig through the cables, we need to keep in mind that while they can reveal quite a bit about the thinking of the state department, they can hardly be taken as factual.
The other example that made me realize how important it is to point this out regards, North Korea. Some cables have come to light that assert that China would approve of the reunification of North and South under the South Korean government.
These cables most likely reflect wishful thinking on the part of Washington and especially Seoul. Every other piece of evidence points to the contrary. It is unlikely that China would allow its greatest foil to American foreign policy in Asia, especially after recent US sales of weapons to Taiwan.
While the cables can give us previously unheard of access to American foreign policy and even insight to other government, they are hardly infallable. One story that I hope that the media will focus on from the cables is just how bad the State Department and the CIA are at gathering intelligence. Something I have long complained about.