Today's media
It really amazes me every time I watch or read the news to see what extent our media outlets and news reporters go to, just to "get the story". Recently there has been huge backlash from The New York Times reporting a story on the US Government's use of financial tracking to capture terrorists across the world. Instead of praising the government for capturing those who threaten our national security and are willing to kill themselves in order to kill Americans, the Times turned the story into another scandal, calling the use of financial tracking another "invasion of privacy". Just like the tracking of international phone calls, this has turned into another story about "The Man" and how he is out to get the little guy. Are these reporters and editors really this stupid? Ann Coulter said it best.
"Thanks to The New York Times, the easiest job in the world right now is: "Head of Counterintelligence -- Al Qaida." You just have to read The New York Times over morning coffee, and you're done by 10 a.m."
Revealing how exactly the government tracks and captures terrorists. As Coulter said in her article, should this not be considered treason? If you're a liberal, obviously not. Today's America doesn't see treason. They see another bandwagon to jump on.
This is just a small thing that bothers me. What really bothers me even more is much closer to home. My wife is still back in Hawaii, where I am stationed. Recently there was a soldier killed here in Iraq that was also from Hawaii. His unit just recently deployed here, and sadly he was killed. I haven't heard the exact details of the story yet, but obviously the family is taking it very hard. This family had just moved to Hawaii very recently, and did not know a lot of people. But thanks to other families, there has been an outpouring of support for them. To my knowledge, more then $500 has been donated by other wives, for buying flowers and just helping wherever it’s needed. It really warms my heart to see military wives pull together in times like this.
This article isn't about that though. It is about the media. Soon after this woman's husband was reported killed, the Honolulu Advertiser apparently got wind of the story. They called to see if the family wished to comment and were told no. Not giving up, the reporters at the Advertiser have apparently called all of this soldier's family members. They called a woman that was the soldier's neighbor five years ago, and is seventy years old. They continued to call the immediate family again and again.
The Honolulu Advertiser has lost any respect I might have had for it. I will not buy any of their papers after this incident. Where do these reporters get the notion they have any right to do things like this? The right to freedom of the press does not give you the right to invade someone else's privacy. Celebrities have been complaining about this for years, but I never thought I would see it hit so close to home. I went to the Advertiser's website and filled out their online form to submit a letter to the editor, complaining about their lack of respect for this moment of grief and loss that this family has been dealt. When did it respect for others loss of a loved one lose its luster? When did the media obtain rights to invade the privacy of a family in mourning?
Personally I think it is just another reporter looking to find another Cindy Sheehan. All I can say is if something were to happen to me, god help the reporter that tried to do this to my wife and family. I would haunt him for the rest of his miserable life. Maybe then he'd learn to respect the dead.
"Thanks to The New York Times, the easiest job in the world right now is: "Head of Counterintelligence -- Al Qaida." You just have to read The New York Times over morning coffee, and you're done by 10 a.m."
Revealing how exactly the government tracks and captures terrorists. As Coulter said in her article, should this not be considered treason? If you're a liberal, obviously not. Today's America doesn't see treason. They see another bandwagon to jump on.
This is just a small thing that bothers me. What really bothers me even more is much closer to home. My wife is still back in Hawaii, where I am stationed. Recently there was a soldier killed here in Iraq that was also from Hawaii. His unit just recently deployed here, and sadly he was killed. I haven't heard the exact details of the story yet, but obviously the family is taking it very hard. This family had just moved to Hawaii very recently, and did not know a lot of people. But thanks to other families, there has been an outpouring of support for them. To my knowledge, more then $500 has been donated by other wives, for buying flowers and just helping wherever it’s needed. It really warms my heart to see military wives pull together in times like this.
This article isn't about that though. It is about the media. Soon after this woman's husband was reported killed, the Honolulu Advertiser apparently got wind of the story. They called to see if the family wished to comment and were told no. Not giving up, the reporters at the Advertiser have apparently called all of this soldier's family members. They called a woman that was the soldier's neighbor five years ago, and is seventy years old. They continued to call the immediate family again and again.
The Honolulu Advertiser has lost any respect I might have had for it. I will not buy any of their papers after this incident. Where do these reporters get the notion they have any right to do things like this? The right to freedom of the press does not give you the right to invade someone else's privacy. Celebrities have been complaining about this for years, but I never thought I would see it hit so close to home. I went to the Advertiser's website and filled out their online form to submit a letter to the editor, complaining about their lack of respect for this moment of grief and loss that this family has been dealt. When did it respect for others loss of a loved one lose its luster? When did the media obtain rights to invade the privacy of a family in mourning?
Personally I think it is just another reporter looking to find another Cindy Sheehan. All I can say is if something were to happen to me, god help the reporter that tried to do this to my wife and family. I would haunt him for the rest of his miserable life. Maybe then he'd learn to respect the dead.