Hiawatha Bray, a technology reporter who writes for the Boston Globe, is also a member of the Newspaper Guild. He is troubled by the allegations leveled by Linda Foley, the president of his union, who accused the US military of deliberately targeting journalists in war zones. Her "clarification" only made her statement more confusing. In An open letter to Linda Foley, Mr. Bray says this:
I therefore call upon you to state clearly and unambiguously whether you believe that any branch of the US military or government has adopted a deliberate policy of targeting journalists in war zones. This is a simple question, easily answered. I can see no rational reason for you to hesitate about answering it.
I agree with Mr. Bray. It's high time Foley states exactly what she meant by what appears to be a smear against the military's upper echelon. Unlike Mr. Bray, I don't believe it's possible to misinterpret Foley; her clarification was designed to shield her from accusations of "not supporting the troops". Ms. Foley forgets that generals and admirals are troops, too, and shifting the blame does not ameliorate the baselessness of her claims.
posted on May 28, 2005 09:19 AM
