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It's been a week now. I've been waiting to see if some of the media crawl into depth into the Pakistani attack on a Madrasah. They were all very anxious to report on the local spin doctors saying the Madrasah was full of school children. In one particular case, however, the local NBC news stable had a contact just a few miles away and this local reporter made a quick trip over to the school to see what was up. Then like one might expect, the reporter was interviewed as to what he saw and felt. Then things went wonky. The interviewer began the interview just fine, but as soon as it was apparent the reporter wasn't buying the propaganda, the interview stopped. The reporter had just replied to the question about the school's reputation. Very good question. But the reporter answered that the school WAS a militant training facility and in fact started naming names...the leader in the area, Faqir Mohammed and his deputy whom the reporter believed was killed in the attack. The very next question, logically would have been: "Did you see any of the bodies being pulled from the wreckage?" or "Did you see any school children's bodies...this was a school right?"

But no, those very logical questions from an on-the-scene witness never got asked. The inteviews stops with a screech. Why one wonders? Some sort of taboo? Surely we were going to be treated to rows of sheet covered bodies the next day, so why not ask the obvious questions. A two question interview is hardly good reporting...especially with a "man-on-the-scene" report such as this. NBC should be ashamed of that whole regional news section and needs some leadership there. Perhaps some new blood is needed at home as well. Talk about a chance to really do some good in reporting! The reporter was okay, he was an excellent witness.

But what the hell happened to the interviewer? Faqir stick a gun in his back or something? Sheesh! The Reporter is talking about the number one guy reporting to Osama bin Laden and Ayman Al-Zawahari in Pakistan! Mr. Al-Qaeda Pakistan. Now that is a freakin' story! How about calling in another damned airstrike, like right now. Of course, that would be a headline. "NBC reporter tips Pakistani Military to location of Number One Al-Qaeda boss in Pakistan." Or better yet, "Number One Pakistan Al-Qaeda Boss Killed On Tip from NBC News Crew."

Oh well, I guess I shouldn't expect much...now if this guy was jumping up and down and saying "look at all those kids lying their dead? Why did this happen?" That would have been on the front page of the MSNBC site, and on NBC news in a flash. But when the news is NOT what the editors WANT to publish, the right questions never get asked cuz they will get the WRONG answers. See how that works? Disgusting.

"NBC: On-scene at blasted Pakistan madrassa", NBC News, MSNBC Online, 10/31/2006
[http://www.msnbc.ms n.com/id/15486181/]

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