More from the mixed-up conversation files of Cory & I....last night on the way home from Oakland (where I went to hear a reading from the wonderfully sharp Grace Paley - I can only hope I'm half as active and half as smart as she is when I'm 80), we talked more about the war and war coverage and the firing of Peter Arnett.
I have really mixed feelings about the Arnett situation. On one hand I think he sensationalizes the war to an extreme - his remarks during the initial start of the troops' "shock and awe" campaign were horribly inappropriate (something along the lines of "I'm shocked and this is awe-inspiring". I'm not sure of the exact phrasing, but it was something along these lines) and he definitely seems to understand his role as a media celebrity as evidenced by this quote from an article he wrote for the Mirror:
"I'm not here to be a superstar. I have been there in 1991 and could never be bigger than that."
But, read the rest of the article and it's also clear, once again, that there's a story that's not being told here in the States - a story that the government and the general media does not want to be told.
So if it takes over-the-top, sensationalizing assholes like Peter Arnett to tell those stories in their over-the-top, horribly inappropriate ways, I'm left to wonder: well, then what's the alternative? Right now there is no alternative, at least not when it comes from getting reports from someone who is actually in Baghdad. According to the UK-based Mirror, Arnett is now part of their staff. I'd almost prefer it if he started his own blog or engaged in some other form of personal journalism. Still, either way, his continued reports should be interesting - and perhaps, required reading...