CNN’s Michael Ware suuuure is controversial, and frankly i’m shocked that CNN hasn’t abandoned him in Baghdad (yet).
no, he hasn’t been drawing maps in the sand to give away troop locations. he hasn’t been maligning Retired members of the US Military. he’s been reporting the ground truth from Iraq, since before the war even began. and some people don’t seem to be very fond of that.
the first stirrings of ‘controversy’ came last week, when Michael Ware responded to a comment made by Senator McCain that ‘the surge is working’, and that things are actually going much better in Baghdad than the media would like their American audience to know.. in fact, the Senator claimed at the time, in an interview with Bill Bennet, “there are neighborhoods in Baghdad where you and i could walk through those neighborhoods, today…” - this prompted Mr. Ware’s now famous (and tragically hilarious)‘neverland’ comment.
well, this weekend Senators McCain & Graham traveled to neverland, complete with flak jackets, a heavily armed contingent of US Troops, and close air support. you know, just the average neighborhood stroll.
-
yesterday, April Fool Matt Drudge reported an ‘exclusive’ (i.e. no reputable news agency would report it) from an unnamed official @ the McCain/Graham press conference, that Mr. Ware had been ‘heckling’ the Senators, laughing and mocking their comments. and of course the always skeptical ‘critical thinkers’ on the Right greeted the story with the expected grain of salt.
just kidding. the story has found more legs than a Rockettes audition. Powerline, SayAnything, NRO,Jawa, HotAir, NationalLedger, and LittleGreenFootballs jumped on the story faster than you can say ‘blackball’.
CNN reported recently that video of the press conference was available on their website, without mentioning that it’s in a subscription-only section of the site (can’t tell if they’re trying to boost subscribers or if they just can’t be bothered to defend their correspondent).
but thanks to The Raw Story (and mickware.com), the video is now freely available for viewing. Mr. Ware is seated directly in front of the camera during the wide-shot, no laughter, no heckling. he raises his hand for a question just as the press conference ends, but strangely is not called upon. kind of just like he said in the first place.
now, to their credit LGF has updated their post, mentioning that “there’s no visible evidence on this video of heckling.” - hopefully the ‘pundits’ on those other websites will do the same. that is, if they can find time between reporting from outside the Green Zone and dodging rockets, mortars, IEDs, snipers, sunni deathsquads, shi’ite militias, ‘friendly fire’, and random thugs and kidnappers.
oh wait - that’s not the pundits, it’s Michael Ware.
aussie aussie aussie. oi, oi, oi.
