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Al Qaeda Images and Videos Expertly Doctored (by US) -Wired News

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IChing Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 12:34 PM
Original message
Al Qaeda Images and Videos Expertly Doctored (by US) -Wired News
Edited on Thu Aug-02-07 12:38 PM by IChing
Researcher's Analysis of al Qaeda Images Reveals Surprises -- UPDATED to Include Source Code

Neal Krawetz, a researcher and computer security consultant, gave an interesting presentation today at the BlackHat security conference in Las Vegas about analyzing digital photographs and video images for alterations and enhancements.

Using a program he wrote (and provided on the conference CD-ROM) Krawetz could print out the quantization tables in a JPEG file (that indicate how the image was compressed) and determine the last tool that created the image -- that is, the make and model of the camera if the image is original or the version of Photoshop that was used to alter and re-save the image.

Comparing that data to the metadata embedded in the image he could determine if the photo was original or had been re-saved or altered. Then, using error level analysis of an image he could determine what were the last parts of an image that were added or modified.

Krawetz's most telling discovery comes in the form of a detail contained in a 2006 Ayman al-Zawahiri tape. From his analysis he concludes that the As-Sahab logo (the alleged media arm of Al-Qaeda) and the IntelCenter logo (a U.S. based private intelligence organization that "monitors terrorist activity") were both added to the video at the same time.

http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2007/08/researchers-ana.html
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bananas Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 12:40 PM
Response to Original message
1. dialup warning - the pdf in that article is 35 megabytes
Edited on Thu Aug-02-07 12:41 PM by bananas
The one at the link "You can also view his BlackHat presentation here (PDF)."

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IChing Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 12:44 PM
Response to Reply #1
2. Thanks for adding that
I think this is big BTW
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tnlurker Donating Member (698 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 12:45 PM
Response to Original message
3. If we had a real Media
This would be one of the top stories today.
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earthboundmisfit Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 12:48 PM
Response to Original message
4. Off to zee Greatest!
Now why would those two logos be added at the same time, hmmm?
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OmmmSweetOmmm Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 12:51 PM
Response to Original message
5. Recommending and sent off to Keith Olbermann!!! Thanks!! nt
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orleans Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 12:52 PM
Response to Original message
6. so...why would a u.s. based private intelligence organization
be putting their logo on a terrorist video at the same time the terrorists are putting their logo on it?
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dkofos Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 01:12 PM
Response to Reply #6
10. Because they are the same organisation??
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Supersedeas Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 10:27 AM
Response to Reply #6
43. maybe Emmanuel Goldstein really is alive -- 2 more minutes of hate
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sicksicksick_N_tired Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 01:06 PM
Response to Original message
7. At the SAME TIME?!?!!!!
:wow:
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IChing Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 01:09 PM
Response to Reply #7
8. Most be part of their government contract
Paragraph 19, section 84.....see Ingsoc clause.
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sicksicksick_N_tired Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 01:20 PM
Response to Reply #8
12. No Shit!!! Is this not hard evidence of treason?
:wow: I just can not wrap my brain around this 'discovery'!! :wow:
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LeftHander Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 01:11 PM
Response to Original message
9. I just went LIHOP to MIHOP. nt
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dkofos Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 01:13 PM
Response to Reply #9
11. I read the PNAC document. I've been MIHOP ever since.
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BattyDem Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 01:22 PM
Response to Original message
13. At the same time?!?
:wow: :wtf:

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Psyop Samurai Donating Member (873 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 01:38 PM
Response to Original message
14. Why does Mr. Krawetz hate America? ..n/t
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greyl Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 02:15 PM
Response to Original message
15. What a wonderfully misleading title you've got there.
Edited on Thu Aug-02-07 02:29 PM by greyl
It doesn't take an expert to add text or a logo to video, and I'm not sure what the implication you're trying to make is.

Also, I'm not buying Krawetz's assessment of his program. It looks to me like every part of the image that has more detail appears to give a result that he attributes to alteration.

Do you think the edge of al-Zawahiri's clothing, his beard, his eyes, and the lamp were all digitally altered to give a false impression?

edit to add pic:


and it's also possible Kim Zetter did some sloppy quoting with the "at the same time" quote and that Krawetz never made that claim.
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Pawel K Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 02:35 PM
Response to Reply #15
16. The much bigger problem with this is that videos, especially videos off a video camera...
dont use JPEGs for compression. And error correction like this will only work with JPEGs.
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greyl Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 02:40 PM
Response to Reply #16
17. True. Are you "hmmmmm"? ;)


Maybe it's just me, but I do not see how this will work for videos.

If the video was shot in front of a "black sheet" (BTW - black?? chroma keys are green or blue) and the image was added during the editing I don't see how this would work, since there is no jpeg involved in all this. You would be working on the video in a high res format, and would later compress it to the final product.
If the video had been edited with less advanced technology, you would probably not need any special analysis at all to know if it had been chroma keyed.

Also consider that the final mastering of the video on (from what we hear on the news) VHS tapes or files delivered through the web will degrade the image so badly that any analysis on this highly compressed material (in the VHS case, this will have even undergone DA/AD conversions) would appear to be completely pointless.

If only the still had been modified, again this analysis would be pointless as you would only need to compare it to the original video to know the difference.

Besides, the "error level subtraction" method does not make much sense to me. If you take a JPG image and save it at 90% quality, re-open it and re-save it at 90% quality, you will not have the same file the second time. You will be saving a 90% quality version of something that is already 90% of the original. So if you subtract the second image from the first, you will get a different error level all around the edges - where jpg compression is more visible. That appears to be exactly what is happening in those images, where areas that have more edges, and therefore present higher jpeg compression artifacts seem to stand out more. Notice the beard in the first image, the wraps of the robe in the second one - all edges always stand out. I do realize that this will work if you add a perfectly uncompressed image on top of a highly compressed jpg, as the resulting image will have a much lower error level in the freshly added images than in the original one, but this would be quite obvious to the naked eye as well. In case of similarly compressed images, I don't think this can be used to prove anything.

That being said, I might have a different opinion if I had been able to see this presentation in person.

Posted by: hmmmmm | Aug 2, 2007 9:10:23 AM
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DBoon Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 08:37 AM
Response to Reply #17
37. Blackhat presentation materials are usually online
see http://www.blackhat.com/html/bh-link/briefings.html

By next week the presentation slides should be there
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Maraya1969 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 11:45 AM
Response to Reply #15
60. The question I have is Why would a private intelligence firm add their
logo to any video made by Al Qaeda? Unless they helped make the film and their logo was added automatically.
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tom_paine Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 02:43 PM
Response to Original message
18. Yet another thing we all knew, that is now coming out confirmed
I wonder if they can detect that some of the Bin Laden tapes were manufactured and shot in the basement of the Crawford Stage Set.
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Name removed Donating Member (0 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 03:15 PM
Response to Original message
19. Deleted sub-thread
Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.
 
IChing Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 03:37 PM
Response to Original message
20. 2ND UPDATE- from wired news-IntelCenter Co says you can't prove it.
Edited on Thu Aug-02-07 03:47 PM by IChing
"I quoted Krawetz as saying that the evidence indicates that the IntelCenter
and As-Sahab logos were added to the al-Zawahiri video at the same time.

Ben Venzke of IntelCenter says his organization didn't add the As-Sahab logo.

He points out that just because the error levels are the same for two items in an image,
that doesn't prove they were added at the same time, only that the compression was the same for both items when they were added.

http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2007/08/researchers-ana.html
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

You may wonder who is this guy in the photo, well he is an American from Southern California
whose grandfather was on the board of directors of the ANTI-DEFLAMATION LEAGUE.
Born Adam Pearlman,
now known as Adam Yahiye Gadahn




Gadahn is the son of Jennifer and Phil Gadahn, a musician best known for the rare
but critically acclaimed psychedelic album "Relatively Clean Rivers".

Gadahn's Jewish paternal grandfather, Carl Pearlman, was a prominent surgeon
and on the Board of Directors of the Anti-Defamation League; his paternal grandmother, Agnes Branch, was an editor for The Chronicle Christian Newspaper.<4> Before Adam's birth, his father, originally Phil Pearlman, converted to Christianity and changed his name to "Gadahn," derived from the name of the Biblical figure "Gideon".

Gadahn's family raised and butchered goats in accordance with halal
food requirements for sale to Muslim groceries on a farm in Winchester,
in Riverside County, California. Adam was homeschooled until mid-1995,
when at the age of 16 he moved in with his grandparents in Santa Ana, California.
Adam was described by former friends as a "loner" as well as a "follower" who had little experience in social situtations.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Yahiye_Gadahn
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greyl Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 04:19 PM
Response to Reply #20
21. Wow, thanks.
:thumbsup:

Just to get this straight, did Kim misquote Krawetz, or has the story changed based solely on what Venzke is saying?

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IChing Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 04:23 PM
Response to Reply #21
22. It was just the inteligence corporation disputing Krawetz


The thing is the researcher released his source code for anyone to check.
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eridani Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 08:27 PM
Response to Reply #21
23. It's one of those "consistent with" but does not prove situations n/t
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IChing Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 08:55 PM
Response to Reply #23
24. This is the same firm that releases all of the Al Qaeda tapes to the news.
The ones that occur right before the elections, or sagging polls
or even the last 'new' tape of Osama that proved to be
very old, five years old.

IntelCenter is run by Ben Venzke, former director of intelligence at a company called IDEFENSE, which is a Verisign company. IDEFENSE is a web security company that monitors intelligence from middle east conflicts and focuses on cyber threats among other things.

It is also heavily populated with long serving ex-military intelligence officials.

The Director of Threat intelligence, Jim Melnick, served 16 years in the US army and the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) and worked in psychological operations. From the IDEFENSE website:

Prior to joining iDefense, Mr. Melnick served with distinction for more than 16 years in the U.S. Army and the Defense Intelligence Agency. During this period, Mr. Melnick served in a variety of roles, including psychological operations, international warning issues with emphasis on foreign affairs and information operations and Russian affairs. He also served in active political/military intelligence roles with an emphasis on foreign affairs. Mr. Melnick is currently a U.S. Army Reserve Colonel with Military Intelligence, assigned to the Office of the Secretary of Defense. Mr. Melnick has been published in numerous military and foreign affairs journals, and has received numerous military and DIA awards. Mr. Melnick has a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies from the U.S. Naval War College, a Master of Arts in Russian studies from Harvard University, and a Bachelor of Arts with Honors in Political Science from Westminster College.


http://www.verisign.com/security-intelligence-service/index.html

http://www.intelcenter.com/



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The Magistrate Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 09:02 PM
Response to Reply #20
25. As A Matter Of Curiousity, Mr. Iching
Edited on Thu Aug-02-07 09:02 PM by The Magistrate
Could you enlighten me on the signifigance you seem to attach to this Gadan fellow's grandfather have been associated with the Anti-Defamation League?
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IChing Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 09:26 PM
Response to Reply #25
28. I just found Adam Pearlman Gadan's background
Odd to say the least, I only started looking at his background
when I found this story on Wired News that I posted today.

From a LA city beat story.


http://www.lacitybeat.com/article.php?id=1357&IssueNum=74
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The Magistrate Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 10:30 PM
Response to Reply #28
31. What Strikes You As Odd About It, Sir?
A great many young men reject large portions of their up-bringing; it falls into the 'dog bites man' class of news.

Nor is there anything particularly new in the three year old article you have linked to; this has all been in general circulation for a long time.
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MrPrax Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 09:21 AM
Response to Reply #31
40. Some young men
become 'spooks' because they are seized by extreme fanaticism and want to help out the cause?

That's just as likely too, no? In fact that is much more likely than believing this guy made a total break against his beliefs, his culture, his country, his etc, to become a violent terrorist hiding out in Pakistan...

Basically that type of 'cover' is pure narrative -- do you honestly think that any outfit like AQ would really accept a Jewish kid from California?

It sounds to me like Adam wanted something more than just being a mover or art student ;-)

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The Magistrate Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 11:11 AM
Response to Reply #40
54. So It Is Your View, Sir
That this is all a plot owing to his grandfather's activity in the Anti-Defamation League?
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MrPrax Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 12:34 PM
Response to Reply #54
66. Which plot, again?
The one about how a former metal head American Jewish kid becomes a high ranking AQ operative making it his life's ambition to destroy America for the benefit of a universal Islamic state under Whabbism because a bunch of ex-spooks at some private outfit called the Intel Center said so?

Quite a plot, wouldn't you say?

...that's why I figure I'll use Occam's Razor on this one. You should too ;-)
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The Magistrate Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 01:22 PM
Response to Reply #66
69. What Do You Conceive To Be Simpler, Sir?
"People are fucking people, and that is fucked up."
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Poll_Blind Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 10:35 AM
Response to Reply #31
44. .


PB
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The Magistrate Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 11:16 AM
Response to Reply #44
55. Now That, Sir, Looks Like a Patient Man
In my experience, fishing for pan-fish, blue-gills and the like, is the most rewarding, and the best bait craw-dad tail meat. It takes a bit of experiment to get the right length for the line under the bobber, as that will vary with temperature layers in the water, but once ranged in, several tasty meals are assured.
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L. Coyote Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 09:06 PM
Response to Original message
26. US LIES: Journalist Quit Iraqi Media Project = $96M Propaganda Project
US LIES: Journalist Quit Iraqi Media Project = $96M Propaganda Project
Posted by L. Coyote on Sun May-27-07 02:26 PM
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=printer_friendly&forum=102&topic_id=2860567

Before you believe ANYTHING AT ALL in the way of Iraq news, read "Assault on Reason" and these:
INSTALLING DEMOCRACY NOW! USG-seized IRAQ media run by defense contractor.

US Journalist Quit Pentagon Iraqi Media Project = $96M Propaganda Project - http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=980430&mesg_id=981323

======================
Wednesday, January 14th, 2004
U.S. Journalist Quits Pentagon Iraqi Media Project Calling it U.S. Propaganda
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/01/14/155

Listen LINK

We talk to a longtime TV producer about the massive problems he saw in the new U.S.-funded Iraqi Media Network, which he said became an "irrelevant mouthpiece for Coalition Provisional Authority propaganda, managed news and mediocre programs." The U.S. has awarded a $96 million contract to a U.S. producer of communications equipment, Harris Corp., to create a U.S.-funded national media network in Iraq.

According to the head of Harris Corp, the Iraqi Media Network will have 30 TV and radio transmitters, three broadcast studios, and 12 bureaus around Iraq.

After U.S.-led troops ousted Saddam Hussein's regime in April, the state-run broadcasters were seized. Since then, they have been run by a U.S. defense contractor, Science Applications International Corporation. .........

TRANSCRIPT w/ Amy Goodman ........ longtime TV producer, Don North, about the problems he saw ...

==========================
Your tax $$$ purchased media outlets in Iraq, and bought reporters too - http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x980363#980750

We have to ask,
"To what extent is this happening today and everywhere?"
"To what extent is this happening with other issues too?"

I have been told by major news announcers, "We just read it."
And, worse still, they do not even know who writes it for them!

We have to ask,
"To what extent is news just propaganda and BUSH LIES?"

==========================
Pentagon pays Iraqi papers to print its 'good news' stories
Jamie Wilson in Washington
Thursday December 1, 2005 - The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1654661,00.html

Faced with suicide bombings, claims of Iraqi death squads, and kidnappings, the Pentagon has come up with an innovative solution to solving the problems in Iraq: buying good news. Using defence contractors or intermediaries posing as freelance reporters, the military has been paying Iraqi newspapers to publish stories written by a military propaganda unit lauding the US mission.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the articles are translated into Arabic and placed in Baghdad newspapers where they are often presented as unbiased accounts by independent journalists. Records obtained by the newspaper indicate the US has paid to publish dozens of articles since the operation began this year, with headlines such as "Iraqis insist on living despite terrorism" and "more money goes to Iraq's development".

One military official told the LA Times the military has also bought an Iraqi newspaper and taken control of a radio station, ...........

==========================
Pentagon OK's Propaganda for Iraq (and Possibly Elsewhere) - http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x980363#981355
Source: Los Angeles Times, March 4, 2006 - http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-inf ...
http://www.prwatch.org/node/4517

Declaring it "within our authorities and responsibilities," the top U.S. general in Iraq, George Casey, announced that the Lincoln Group program that covertly places stories written by U.S. troops in Iraqi newspapers will continue. Navy Admiral Scott Van Buskirk is also reviewing the Iraq propaganda program. His review was previously described as finished but not public .....

===========================
The Sword Employs the Pen = "the military's practice of paying journalists"

Center for Media and Democracy » Spin of the Day » Feb 07, 2005

The Sword Employs the Pen - http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x980363#981426
http://www.prwatch.org/node/3260

The Pentagon is investigating "the military's practice of paying journalists to write articles and commentary ... and also looking more broadly at Pentagon activities that might involve inappropriate payments to journalists," writes Associated Press. CNN reported on Pentagon involvement with two news websites, Southeast European Times (focused on the Balkans) and Magharebia (focused on North Africa). Some 50 journalists were paid by the Pentagon through a private contractor, Anteon Corporation, ..........

==============================
Pentagon Paid Reporters for Stories Overseas
February 06, 2005 9:00 AM ET
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000789872

WASHINGTON (AP) The Pentagon’s chief investigator is looking into the military’s practice of paying journalists to write articles and commentary for a Web site aimed at influencing public opinion in the Balkans, officials said Friday.

At the request of Larry Di Rita, chief spokesman for Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, the Pentagon’s inspector general, Joseph Schmitz, is reviewing that case and also looking more broadly at Pentagon activities that might involve inappropriate payments to journalists. ...............

==============================
Covert propaganda >> Instances of covert propaganda - http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Covert_propaganda
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lvx35 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 09:13 PM
Response to Original message
27. Good work, Krawetz
Whatever the truth is about the logo, this is really interesting science. Thanks for the work!
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NNN0LHI Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 09:39 PM
Response to Original message
29. I have suspected that the Bush regime has had al-Zawahiri in custody for a long time
Edited on Thu Aug-02-07 09:39 PM by NNN0LHI
His video releases never fail to confirm whatever propaganda Bush is slinging and always at the most politically strategic times.

Don
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HuffleClaw Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Aug-02-07 10:17 PM
Response to Original message
30. not a surprise at all
their propaganda has been clumsy at best. but nice to see it even more exposed.
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DetlefK Donating Member (449 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 04:37 AM
Response to Original message
32. 3rd Update: IntelCenter logo added after As-Sahab
read at end of article
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baldguy Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 06:31 AM
Response to Reply #32
35. That's not the story - you're missing the point
The point is the fear mongers want you to believe that al-Zawahiri periodically has one of his aides set up a camera in his office to shoot a video. BUT NOTHING IN THESE VIDEOS IS REAL - not the setting, not the backdrop, not the furniture.

These little bits of propaganda don't come out of a cave in Afghanistan, or some lawless third world country which will remain unnamed. They are sophisticated productions DESIGNED specifically to be used by the Bush Regime to keep Americans afraid.
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krkaufman Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 10:51 AM
Response to Reply #32
46. Yes, that's a major update to the story. Text follows...
http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2007/08/researchers-ana.html

3rd UPDATE: I was finally able to reach Neal Krawetz at the BlackHat conference to respond to the questions about the IntelCenter and As-Sahab logos (Krawetz doesn't have a cell phone on him so finding him at the conference took a while). He now says that the error levels on the IntelCenter and As-Sahab logos are different and that the IntelCenter logo was added after the As-Sahab logo. However, in a taped interview I conducted with him after his presentation, he said the logos were the same error levels and that this indicated they were added at the same time. Additionally, after I'd written the first blog entry about his presentation, I asked him to read it to make sure everything was correct. He did so while sitting next to me and said it was all correct. He apologizes now for the error and the confusion it caused.


This changes the story angle dramatically, from explicit evidence of the Bush Administration fabricating evidence back to the common understanding that al Qaeda *is* a media-savvy "organization," familiar with digital media technologies.
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Twist_U_Up Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 05:15 AM
Response to Original message
33. Of course you meant to say " Al CIAda"
911 was an inside job
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HamdenRice Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 06:28 AM
Response to Original message
34. K&R
Very interesting to say the least.
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CGowen Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 07:48 AM
Response to Original message
36. 3d update (people start changing stories)
Edited on Fri Aug-03-07 07:48 AM by CGowen
3rd UPDATE: I was finally able to reach Neal Krawetz at the BlackHat conference to respond to the questions about the IntelCenter and As-Sahab logos (Krawetz doesn't have a cell phone on him so finding him at the conference took a while). He now says that the error levels on the IntelCenter and As-Sahab logos are different and that the IntelCenter logo was added after the As-Sahab logo. However, in a taped interview I conducted with him after his presentation, he said the logos were the same error levels and that this indicated they were added at the same time. Additionally, after I'd written the first blog entry about his presentation, I asked him to read it to make sure everything was correct. He did so while sitting next to me and said it was all correct. He apologizes now for the error and the confusion it caused.
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Roland99 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 08:41 AM
Response to Reply #36
38. Someone threaten him or his family?
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Joanne98 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 08:50 AM
Response to Original message
39. MIHOP!
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nashville_brook Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 10:11 AM
Response to Original message
41. 3RD UPDATE >>>>>
sorry if this is a dupe...

3rd UPDATE: I was finally able to reach Neal Krawetz at the BlackHat conference to respond to the questions about the IntelCenter and As-Sahab logos (Krawetz doesn't have a cell phone on him so finding him at the conference took a while). He now says that the error levels on the IntelCenter and As-Sahab logos are different and that the IntelCenter logo was added after the As-Sahab logo. However, in a taped interview I conducted with him after his presentation, he said the logos were the same error levels and that this indicated they were added at the same time. Additionally, after I'd written the first blog entry about his presentation, I asked him to read it to make sure everything was correct. He did so while sitting next to me and said it was all correct. He apologizes now for the error and the confusion it caused.

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IChing Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 10:25 AM
Response to Reply #41
42. Interesting on the semi recant but I think this story still has legs.
I think this article will call for closer scrutiny by the public into IntelCenter's videos and its role in being
the sole depository of terrorist videos for the United States Government.

The videos have been doctored by whom and when is still in contention.

I wonder also about the strange dinosaur toy placed on the video



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CGowen Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 10:36 AM
Response to Reply #42
45. what do you think about this?
A Pakistani tribal militant group responsible for a series of deadly guerrilla raids inside Iran has been secretly encouraged and advised by American officials since 2005, U.S. and Pakistani intelligence sources tell ABC News.

The group, called Jundullah, is made up of members of the Baluchi tribe and operates out of the Baluchistan province in Pakistan, just across the border from Iran.


...


U.S. officials say the U.S. relationship with Jundullah is arranged so that the U.S. provides no funding to the group, which would require an official presidential order or "finding" as well as congressional oversight.

http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2007/04/abc_news_exclus.html


Jundullah
Jundullah is a purely militant outfit whose objective is to target Pakistan's pro-US rulers and US and British interests in the country. Members receive training in Afghanistan and South Waziristan, and it is now actively recruiting.

The organization produces propaganda literature, including documentary films, and has a studio named Ummat. It does similar work for al-Qaeda's media wing, which is called the al-Sahab Foundation.


These media outlets incite the sentiments of Muslim youths by producing films showing Western - particularly Israeli and US - "atrocities" against Muslim communities. This is the basic tool through which a new generation of jihadis is being raised.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/FG20Df05.html
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krkaufman Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 10:56 AM
Response to Reply #45
50. It's extremely unfortunate and sad ...
... that this Administration hasn't learned from our past mistakes. al Qaeda sprung from our funding of Muslim extremists to fight against the USSR in Afghanistan, and now we're repeating that mistake in the case you've highlighted (Jundullah), as well as in Iraq where we're funding and arming Sunni insurgents.

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greyl Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 11:03 AM
Response to Reply #50
52. Yep. Terrorism is Democratic talking point, not a Repub one like Fox would have us believe.
It's sad to see members of the left spinning our best arguments right out from under us while at the same time making us look silly.
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krkaufman Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 11:20 AM
Response to Reply #52
57. Agreed. One can be strong without being bloodthirsty.
I'd prefer a sane, reasoned Richard Holbrooke to the idealogical fanaticism of a John Bolton.
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tomp Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 11:58 AM
Response to Reply #52
62. so, the left is spinning?
i assume you mean you buy the official story of 9/11 and the the "war on terror" is a reasonable thing to pursue and all would be better if the dems were handling it instead of the repubs? did i read you right?
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Old and In the Way Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 11:26 AM
Response to Reply #45
59. Am I reading this correctly?
Jundullah does contract media work for both the USG and Al-Qaeda? If so, this is really an amazing revelation and deserves a thread of its own.
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CGowen Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 11:45 AM
Response to Reply #59
61. That's how I posted it. n/t
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krkaufman Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 10:53 AM
Response to Reply #42
48. You *are* kidding, right?
(as the image you've included was part of the technical presentation by Krawetz, but NOT from the al Qaeda videos/images he'd reviewed.)
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greyl Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 10:55 AM
Response to Reply #42
49. It has legs for those who might not read for comprehension and jump to hasty conclusions
because of confirmation bias.

The dinosaur you're talking about isn't from a video at all, and it has nothing to do with Al Queda. It's from Krawetz's own .jpeg example of how his program works.

My view at this point is that I want to hear directly from Krawetz about this article, because I have very little confidence in what Kim Zetter has written about the topic.
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ooglymoogly Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 10:53 AM
Response to Original message
47. Thanx Krawetz for being intrepid and the real investigative
journalist....Here is something that might tie in on a personal level...Everyday when i accessed my computer and ran a scan the spyware tracking cookie (something I forgot) @verisign.com kept comming up and I could not get rid of it and I tried every spyware I could get my hands on. I finally kept restoring my computer to earlier dates imtill it was gone. Could this be the same verisign. This episode scared me a lot since I am an outspoken critic of this admin.
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greyl Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 11:00 AM
Response to Reply #47
51. A Verisign cookie is probably the result of a secure online purchase that you made or
from some other secure website you've visited, like your bank or cellphone company. Nothing to be alarmed about.
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ooglymoogly Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 11:09 AM
Response to Reply #51
53. thank you I saw verisign in the Krawetz article and red flares went up.
Edited on Fri Aug-03-07 11:11 AM by ooglymoogly
now it makes sense. I ask myself why didn't I figure that out. I'm very suspicious of tracking cookies.
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greyl Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 11:24 AM
Response to Reply #53
58. You're welcome. About that...
Is it possible that you mistook "version" for "verisign" because it was on your mind when you read it? Was it in an ad?
I don't see verisign anywhere.

Also, if you're concerned about security and aren't using the Firefox browser with the AdBlock and NoScript extensions, you should start. ;)
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ooglymoogly Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 12:18 PM
Response to Reply #58
63. look at Ichings post 24 I have cut and pasted this line
Edited on Fri Aug-03-07 12:26 PM by ooglymoogly
"which is a Verisign company"... though that was in a follow up post No. 24... the complete line is ...."company called IDEFENSE, which is a Verisign company.
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ooglymoogly Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 12:21 PM
Response to Reply #58
64. and yes i am using firefox but will have to check for these extensions
thank you for the advice
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Eurobabe Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 11:19 AM
Response to Original message
56. But of course!
I wouldn't put it past these slimy bastards.

TERRA, TERRA, TERRA!!! Run for your lives, AL-CIADA is COMING!!!
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meowomon Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 12:26 PM
Response to Original message
65. Al Qaeda Videos Scare Me So Much!!
That I'll just have to vote for a Republican mext time!
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myrna minx Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 12:37 PM
Response to Reply #65
67. LoL. For some reason I read your sub. line with Homer Simpson's
voice in mind. :rofl: :hi:
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mopinko Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Aug-03-07 12:39 PM
Response to Original message
68. shocked, i'm shocked i tell you
and people think i am nuts when i say i don't believe in al queda.
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