Look who's behind those planted, paid for stories in Iraqi press

First, the story

US paying Iraqi press to run favourable stories
By Mark Mazzetti and Borzou Daragahi
Published: November 30 2005 08:16 | Last updated: November 30 2005 08:16

As part of an information offensive in Iraq, the U.S. military is secretly paying Iraqi newspapers to publish stories written by American troops in an effort to burnish the image of the U.S. mission in Iraq.


The articles, written by U.S. military “information operations” troops, are translated into Arabic and placed in Baghdad newspapers with the help of a defense contractor, according to U.S. military officials and documents obtained by the Los Angeles Times.

Many of the articles are presented in the Iraqi press as unbiased news accounts written and reported by independent journalists. The stories trumpet the work of U.S. and Iraqi troops, denounce insurgents, and tout U.S.-led efforts to rebuild the country.

While the articles are basically truthful, they present only one side of events and omit information that might reflect poorly on the U.S. or Iraqi governments, officials said. Records and interviews indicate that the U.S. has paid Iraqi newspapers to run dozens of such articles -- with headlines such as “Iraqis Insist on Living Despite Terrorism” -- since the effort began this year.

The operation is designed to mask any connection with the U.S. military. The Pentagon has a contract with a small Washington-based firm called Lincoln Group, which helps translate and place the stories. The Lincoln Group’s Iraqi staff, or its subcontractors, sometimes pose as freelance reporters or advertising executives when they deliver the stories to Baghdad media outlets.

http://news.ft.com/cms/s/3ca72216-6179-11da-8470-0000779e2340.html

And who is the Lincoln group??? (You can see this coming a mile away)

Christian Bailey, "former CEO of ExpressAction, now at Lincoln Asset Management Group LLC. <1> (http://www.lincolnam.com/)<2> (http://www.lincolnam.com/contact.html)

Affiliations
Lead21: Member, Board of Directors (2004-2005) and NYC Co-Chair, Republican National Convention/U.S. presidential election, 2004 <3> (http://www.lead21.org/page4.html)<4> (http://www.lead21.org/page6.html)
Related SourceWatch Resources
Iraqex
Lincoln Group
Note: Neither the identity of or information about ExpressAction has been found.

Retrieved from "http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Christian_Bailey"

Christian Bailey, "former CEO of ExpressAction, now at Lincoln Asset Management Group LLC. <1> (http://www.lincolnam.com/)<2> (http://www.lincolnam.com/contact.html)

Affiliations
Lead21: Member, Board of Directors (2004-2005) and NYC Co-Chair, Republican National Convention/U.S. presidential election, 2004 <3> (http://www.lead21.org/page4.html)<4> (http://www.lead21.org/page6.html)
Related SourceWatch Resources
Iraqex
Lincoln Group
Note: Neither the identity of or information about ExpressAction has been found.

Retrieved from "http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Christian_Bailey"

In other words, a GOP operative with a shady past.

For more on Lincoln Group:

http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Lincoln_Group

to support their spin? :grr: :nuke:

A group of dishonest republicans, what a SHOCK. Can this be true after all the great stories we get from Faux news, which everyone knows is REAL news. What is this world coming to. Now I have to get back to the radio more of my wingnuts are on, and I just have to hear THE TRUTH. Ha ha!!

Well, the sane military. It's so blatant, and imagine how this will affect those whores in Iraq who took the money. Either they denounce it or their credibility is shot. Either way, the forces of truth win.

actual investigative skills left.

Nominated.

see to it that 'investigation' and 'skill' are mere illusions.

Whatever happened to the 'investigations' of paid off domestic propaganda pushers? Exactly.

i think it's important to point out that the US is not able to control the press in Iraq ... i don't for a minute doubt the allegations that the US is doing all it can to plant propaganda throughout Iraq's media ... but still, the Iraqi press has been telling the Iraqi people the truth about their American occupiers and their goals of empire and puppet governments ...

here's a November 28th article that appeared in Iraq's Azzaman newspaper:

away with it here you can get away with it their.

Ali Ahm-strahn Williamsabi...

Really.

Note to Frank at Lincoln Payroll: Please expedite my check, thanks!

We can't pay for hotel rooms or housing for people whose homes were wiped out by storms and really shitty flood levee planning, but we can pay a republican douche bag to write propaganda for Iraqi "freedom."

That is the cherry on top of the cake of my day.

How can any of the other pay-for-play journalists comment on this or affect high dudgeon over such duplicitous, corrupt practices when so much of the mainstream media are similarly compromised?