You provide the pictures ...
... I'll provide the war with Eastasia. Or Southwestasia, as the case may be. Here's the hed from the morning fishwrap:
Belligerent Iran heats up
U.S. presidential politics
Some candidates hint at new war to end nuclear threat
U.S. presidential politics
Some candidates hint at new war to end nuclear threat
Almost 30 years after the Iranian hostage crisis cost then-President Jimmy Carter a second term, the Islamic republic is back at the forefront of American politics, stirring the 2008 U.S. presidential race with its worrisome nuclear research and its role in Iraq.
Forgive yourself a bit of an eye-roll; it starts out like just another Gannett venture into the spectacularly foreign country of international issues. But as it turns out, with an exception or two, the story's fairly temperate about Iran; it's about the belligerence of the presidential candidates. Which is a worthy topic, and frankly a scary one, but it isn't well-served by the naive jingoism cooked up on the desk and served in the headline.*
At the same time, give some credit to the sidebar, from which the astute reader can learn that there are actually eight people, rather than three, seeking the Democratic nomination. And that several of them, you know, seem to think that the point of having a professional diplomatic corps is to use it. And that one of them (the one who actually has a substantial amount of international experience) thinks we might ought to acknowledge that being on Iraq's side in the grisly 1980-88 war wasn't such a great idea!
Contrast that with the two largest papers in North Carolina, which seem to think the salient feature of this race is that it includes a candidate who was born in the mythical state of "Carolinas." Not many things make the Freep's national coverage look comprehensive these days, but goofbag hyperprovincialism is a good way to start.
* Bear in mind that this paper is generally deemed the further left of the two in this particular JOA; given that it's the one that sent its edpage editor to a fan-the-flames-against-Iran rally earlier this fall, you can make of that what you will.
Labels: near east
posted by fev at 10:58 AM
2 Comments:
Dang those Iranians! Why won't they LET US ALONE??? Why do they elect a radical after we spit on their moderate? Why do they insist on following the N Korean path, instead of the Iraqi one? Why do they want their own goals?
Aw, c'mon. Things like the N&O's breathless announcement that Edwards had won the endorsement of the Indiana Public Service Union are what I get out of bed for.
But let's be fair - if you were the new editor (Melanie Sill has split for other scenes) how would you feel if your Lords 'n' Masters had decreed wall-to-wall coverage of a colorless putz?
Of course, there's always Liz Dole to cover too - assuming she actually does anything remarkable between now and the election. So have pity on the editor's predicament: having to build copy on two apparatchiks.
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