FreeChile
16th August 2006, 12:09 PM
How different would this story read if we were to remove the opinions of the author from it? I wonder how many of us actually do differentiate fact from opinion when reading a story. Below is an example with the boldface being the opinions expressed. Would this story be at all newsworthy if the FAT were removed?
The Capers That Ensure America's Freedom
By Al Kamen
Wednesday, August 16, 2006; Page A11
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/15/AR2006081500994.html
Iran Redux: Holding the U.S. Hostage Again
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Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad started his own blog -- http://www.ahmadinejad.ir -- with a long-winded rambling about his upbringing, the 1979 revolution and then on to the usual bitter attack on Saddam Hussein and the United States.
Still, the blog, in Persian and translated into Arabic and -- badly -- into English, shows some promise. Ahmadinejad pledged "from now onwards, I will try to make it shorter and simpler. With hope in God, I intend to wholeheartedly complete my talk in future with allotted fifteen minutes." We can only hope.
There were some interesting passages. Our favorite: "The last year of my high school," he writes, "I prepared myself for university admission test-conquer. And later on that year, I took the test. Although I had nose bleeding during the test, but I became 132nd student among over 400 thousand participants."
The nose bleed probably came as he tried to answer that question about the Holocaust.
The blog even has an online poll question: "Do you think that the US and Israeli intention and goal by attacking Lebanon is pulling the trigger for another word ?war"
Stunningly, on Monday, only 12,818 voters, or 42 percent, said "yes," while 58 percent, 17,587, said "No." But by yesterday the vote had curiously reversed, with 55 percent (70,022 votes) saying that's what the goal was and 45 percent (about 56,000) saying "no." Could be the regime cracked the whip. Or maybe those fingers pounding at Langley got tired.
The Capers That Ensure America's Freedom
By Al Kamen
Wednesday, August 16, 2006; Page A11
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/15/AR2006081500994.html
Iran Redux: Holding the U.S. Hostage Again
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad started his own blog -- http://www.ahmadinejad.ir -- with a long-winded rambling about his upbringing, the 1979 revolution and then on to the usual bitter attack on Saddam Hussein and the United States.
Still, the blog, in Persian and translated into Arabic and -- badly -- into English, shows some promise. Ahmadinejad pledged "from now onwards, I will try to make it shorter and simpler. With hope in God, I intend to wholeheartedly complete my talk in future with allotted fifteen minutes." We can only hope.
There were some interesting passages. Our favorite: "The last year of my high school," he writes, "I prepared myself for university admission test-conquer. And later on that year, I took the test. Although I had nose bleeding during the test, but I became 132nd student among over 400 thousand participants."
The nose bleed probably came as he tried to answer that question about the Holocaust.
The blog even has an online poll question: "Do you think that the US and Israeli intention and goal by attacking Lebanon is pulling the trigger for another word ?war"
Stunningly, on Monday, only 12,818 voters, or 42 percent, said "yes," while 58 percent, 17,587, said "No." But by yesterday the vote had curiously reversed, with 55 percent (70,022 votes) saying that's what the goal was and 45 percent (about 56,000) saying "no." Could be the regime cracked the whip. Or maybe those fingers pounding at Langley got tired.