CBS goes against journalistic ethical standards and attempts to deceive the American people by censoring an interview with John McCain where he made a false statement about the Anbar awakening in Iraq.
McCain likes to toot his horn as a Foreign Policy Expert and someone that “knows how to win wars,” apparently does not even know the timeline of what is going on in Iraq. Steve Benen adds, “The surge has, after all, become the raison d’etre of McCain’s entire presidential campaign. Why would he announce his belief that the surge prompted the Anbar Awakening?” Spencer Ackerman claims, “For McCain to say that the Anbar Awakening is the product of the surge is either a lie or professional malpractice for a presidential candidate who is staking his election on his allegedly superior Iraq judgment.”
What is the bigger issue though? Is it that McCain does not know what the heck is going on in Iraq and makes up events? Perhaps, it is that CBS chose to edit the interview and in an Orwellian fashion they doctored the footage to protect McCain. Steve Benen asks, “Why would CBS News cover-up arguably the biggest candidate error of the entire presidential campaign? Why would CBS News mix-and-match McCain’s responses to make him appear less incompetent? Why would CBS News broadcast a question but not the answer to the question? Why would CBS News post the entire actual interview online, making it easy for us to see their mischief? Why would CBS News deliberately take the most newsworthy element of the interview, and leave it on the editing room floor? Why didn’t Katie Couric hear McCain’s ridiculous answer, and ask a follow-up question seeking clarification?”
Today . . . CBS took a step backwards and unfortunately the United States was forced along for the ride. McCain clearly demonstrated how wrong he is for America. He confirmed his ignorance about U.S. policy in Iraq as CBS did its best to cover it up. What the American people do not know can’t hurt them. Ignorance is indeed Strength!
