Repetition Creates Truth

Originally penned Monday, July 25, 2005

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/07/24/military.release/index.html

CNN is questioning two news releases about two completely different suicide bombings in Iraq because the quote mentioned about the first bombing is virtually identical to the quote for the second bombing. These releases were provided by the U.S. Military, according to CNN. Here are the quotes CNN is referring:

Wednesday, July 13 news release: "'The terrorists are attacking the infrastructure, the children and all of Iraq,' said one Iraqi man who preferred not to be identified. 'They are enemies of humanity without religion or any sort of ethics. They have attacked my community today and I will now take the fight to the terrorists.'"

Sunday, July 24 news release: "'The terrorists are attacking the infrastructure, the ISF and all of Iraq. They are enemies of humanity without religion or any sort of ethics. They have attacked my community today and I will now take the fight to the terrorists,' said one Iraqi man who preferred not to be identified."

What I don’t understand is why they are questioning the U.S. Military about these news releases, when this has been the Bush Administration strategy from the get-go. This is just another example of the PR Mastermind behind the Bush Push. Note the key talking points: enemies of humanity, take the fight to the terrorists. You will likely hear more of these words spoken by those instructed to use them as a tactic to create the spin necessary to perpetuate the war in Iraq.

The unnamed source for both quotes could possibly be from different individuals, both highly instructed on how to speak on talking points, memorizing key phrases, such as the above quotes, and learning how to modify them slightly to apply to a variety of situations.

Of all the media coverage about the Bush Administration, The Daily Show seems to catch this nuance regarding talking points for the Bush Push, and showcase how White House staff and major Republican players repeat these talking points, sometimes almost verbatim. Why can’t other media sources, like CNN, figure this out, too?