White House Presses Newsweek in Wake of Koran Report (NYT)

[Up2Late]

Please Note: This report carries new, more critical info of the WH spin. The headline should probably read "NY Times gets off it's ass and does some reporting for a change")

White House Presses Newsweek in Wake of Koran Report

By ELISABETH BUMILLER
Published: May 18, 2005

WASHINGTON, May 17 - The White House pressed Newsweek on Tuesday to go beyond a retraction and "help repair the damage" to the image of the United States in the Muslim world after the magazine mistakenly reported that a Pentagon investigation had found that interrogators at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, tried to flush a Koran down a toilet. Scott McClellan, the White House press secretary, said at his televised noon briefing that the magazine should decide for itself how to undo what he called the "serious consequences" and "lasting damage" from its reporting, but he repeatedly offered a suggestion. "One way is to point out what the policies and practices of our United States military are," Mr. McClellan said. "Our United States military personnel go out of their way to make sure that the Holy Koran is treated with care."

Newsweek declined to comment on Mr. McClellan's statement that the magazine should help repair the damage to the United States' image abroad. The Pentagon's spokesman, Lawrence DiRita, said the military was still reviewing whether there had been any incidents of abusing the Koran at the prison and said no methodical examination of this question had occurred before Newsweek published its May 1 article.

"We've not previously included that in any kind of previous investigations into detainee operations, because there haven't been credible allegations to that effect," Mr. DiRita said, adding that so far no confirmation of any account involving deliberate desecration had been found. "There is a command philosophy that is clearly one of treating religious items, including the Koran, with a great deal of respect," he said. "That being said, there have been instances, and we'll have more to say about it as we learn more, but where a Koran may have fallen to the floor in the course of searching a cell."

Mr. DiRita said that inmates had reported taking offense at this kind of incident and that log books of any such episodes were being examined. Newsweek's retraction dealt only with its mistaken assertion that the report on a months-long Pentagon investigation was expected to confirm the toilet accusation. But around the world, discussion continued on the larger issue of whether such abuse ever occurred at Guantánamo, as released prisoners have asserted over the years. Their accounts have never been authenticated and did not stir such anger as the Newsweek article, which has been blamed for inciting riots and 17 deaths in the Muslim world, where desecration of the Koran is an inflammatory act.

(more at link above)

[intheflow]

1. Elisabeth Bumiller

Thank you, Ms. Bumiller!

[Jack The Tab]

8. Dont thank Bumiller too much...

She is one of the bigger and better WH Stenographers over at the White House. Just take a look up her name at the Daily Howler sometime and prepare to be astonished at her whoredom.

As for the tone of this article - Newsweek is owned by the same company that owns the Washington Post. Tarnishing Newsweek the way the WH has is bad for business, and these business types have the Post to fire a couple of warning shots across the WH, a la their "Downing Memo more of a long fuse" story yesterday.

[Up2Late]

10. Huh? This is from the New York Times, Not the Washington Post.

Did you confuse the two?

[grytpype]

2. RECOMMENDED! The story is becoming more complicated!

I think the all-out attack on Newsweek has the possibility to really backlash on the WH.

[Virginian]

4. I heard yesterday Newsweek is owned by Washington Post

Washington Post was the paper that exposed Watergate.

I am sure this administration would like to take down the paper that took down Nixon.

The Post was very careful about the Downing Street Memo. They first reported it on page A-16 after the LA Times was the first major paper to report on it.

I have not heard that the Newsweek story was false, only that an unnamed high ranking government source backed out after giving them that one part of the story. That smells like baiting. I think if a source burns the media, the media should burn the source. That source can't be reliable for future stories, might as well out him.

[Up2Late]

6. I think this ANONYMOUS quote says it best:

Republicans close to the White House said that although President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney were genuinely angered by the Newsweek article, West Wing officials were also exploiting it in an effort to put a check on the press.

"There's no expectation that they're going to bring down Newsweek, but there is a feeling that there is no check on what you guys do," said one outside Bush adviser, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he did not want to be identified as talking about possible motives of the White House.

I think this is part of a long term effort to sow mistrust in "the liberal Media" which, by effect, builds trust among the GOP POD people.

[cliss]

7. There could be something to it.

I have no doubt the Newsweek story was true. There have been too many accounts, too many former detainees and too many reports which corroborate the story.

That's probably the reason why the editor of Newsweek stood by his story. Because it was true.

The response from Washington was nothing short of spectacular. Absolutely spellbinding in its capacity to stand up and lie.

What's more, their audacity knows no bounds: now they're making the magazine go one step further and "repair the damage". As if Newsweek can do this.

They almost seem like they're pushing the envelope too far. I think they've painted themselves into a corner. By loudly proclaiming that the information was "false", they're setting themselves up to have the truth brought out.

By focusing on this, they're sealing their own doom.

[grytpype]

3. This is the rare case where the lie is running to catch up with the truth.

It's usually the other way around... the lie goes around the world while the truth is still putting its boots on!

[Toots]

5. Why is it that these Prisoners are credible if they say what the Administr

wants to hear but not credible if they are critical of the US? I know where the credibility lies and it isn't with this Administration.

[RobinA]

9. Is It Me?

Or do I read here an explicit invitation by the President's press secretary to the press to report on the U.S. policies and practices at Guantanamo? I say go for it, boys!!!!

[Up2Late]

11. I wish they would, but...

...not going to hold my breath

[Up2Late]

12. Kick n/t

:kick: