This Is Not News, This Is Propaganda

One intriguing paragraph is the following:

Over half an hour after Mr Medvedev gave his ceasefire order, The Daily Telegraph saw three Russian helicopters fire nine missiles at targets 25 miles north of Tbilisi. It was not immediately clear what they were shooting at.

It leads one to wonder if such an account should be published if it is not clear what really happened. But, it supports the line that Russia is the aggressor and so there’s no problem with not getting all the information before publishing it.

The Times of the UK, owned by Rupert Murdoch, featured a similar paragraph in its coverage:

After President Medvedev's announcement of a halt to operations, however, The Times saw three attack helicopters rising suddenly from behind a hillside deep into Georgia about halfway along the road from Gori to Tbilisi. They swooped low before unleashing what appeared to be three sets of incendiary flares in the direction of Georgian farmland.

Both are suspicious because of how vaguely they are written and lead one to wonder if media outlets were intentionally trying to sow doubt in the minds of people that Russia was going to obey any sort of ceasefire.

Indeed, the Daily Mail of the UK published an opinion editorial titled, “Why puppetmaster Putin is more dangerous than ever.” Not only are we to fear Russia, but we are to fear the ex-KGB agent who enjoys power in Russia despite the fact that he is no longer the nation’s commander-in-chief.

In contrast to U.S. and U.K. media, a few other outlets have chosen to say a bit more rather than simpy parrot descriptions of Russian aggression like the U.S. or U.K. coverage of the conflict.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation in its article on the ceasefire says in the opening sentence, “Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has called an end to the military operation in Georgia, but has stressed that in the event of Georgian attack, Russian troops will hit back.” Few outlets have chosen to cover Russia's belief that Georgia will continue the conflict.

Why might Medvedev suspect Georgia will continue its military adventure into South Ossetia?

Another province, Abkhazia, despite the calls for ceasefire, is defending itself against the Georgian onslaught. According to another press outlet accurately covering the story, the Mail & Guardian from South Africa said:

Separatists in the Black Sea region of Abkhazia, west of the main war theatre, launched a major push early on Tuesday to drive Georgian forces out of the Kodori Gorge -- the only area of the province under Georgian control.

"The operation to liberate Kodori Gorge has started," Abkhazia's self-styled foreign minister Sergei Shamba said. "Our troops are making advances. We are hoping for success."

Abkhazia has made it clear Russia is not involved in this although Russian aircraft has been reported by the U.S. and U.K. press as still being engaged in combat. (Such Russian involvement was covered previously in this article with attention given to the ambiguity of the coverage.)

Abkhazia, like South Ossetia, has claimed it is independent from Georgia, and Saakashvili, president of Georgia, has opposed such claim.

So, it’s no wonder that Russia suggests that it might have to hit Georgia again with its military might.

 1  |  2  |  3  |  4  |  5