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September 17, 2005

Using the tool of television in Iraq

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At long last, it appears that television in Iraq is being used as a propaganda tool against the terrorists (known as "insurgents" to the MSM) currently brutalizing the Iraqi people. The Los Angeles Times takes note:

The one—hour tapes constitute a sort of reality TV whose aim is to win the hearts and minds of the Iraqi people. Aired twice a day, they serve as a counterpoint to the now—familiar images shot by insurgents of cowering hostages and beheadings. They are also a centerpiece of an intense government campaign designed to convince an edgy population that the fledgling government and its hard—hit security forces are making Iraq safer.

"Terrorism in the Grip of Justice" is the title of the series, which began airing shortly before Iraq's national election Jan. 30. While it's not clear just how truthful the videos are, the provocative images seem to bolster skeptical Iraqis' confidence in a government often assailed as ineffective against lawlessness and violence.

"It's a good thing because it makes me feel there is a working government developing day by day and that the security situation is improving," said Fadwa Khalifa, a 22—year—old college student in Baghdad. "But I also fear that it all may be a lie."

The video clips are a big hit in entertainment—starved Iraq, where safe pastimes are few. Venturing out to a park can expose one to car bombs, kidnappings, drive—by shootings or other perils. There's not even the need for an expensive satellite TV to catch the videos, which air on the workaday government—run channel, accessible to anyone with a television set and a cheap antenna.

The program's popularity has not been lost on the insurgents, who have launched a public relations counteroffensive denouncing the tapes as a hoax and threatening in pamphlets to impose "God's justice" on employees of the government—funded network.

Not exactly rocket science. But better late than never.

Hat tip: Ed Lasky, who adds:

Note the contrast: Palestinian media glorifies terrorists as shahid—the highest form of martyr. Iraqi television instead invokes the long Arab custom of shaming evil—doers. When will the Palestinians truly show that their society is reforming?

Thomas Lifson   3 2 05