04 19 06 Daily SitRep

First Person Reporting
Mini Dawn Patrol- Mrs Greyhawk

Busy Day!

To keep you all busy, let me introduce a few embedded reporters who are doing the down in the grit, Michael Yon style of reporting:

Michael Fumento who was embedded w/ 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force in Fallujah in 2005 before he was injured and medevacked out of Baghdad, he's back in Fallujah and on his way to Ramadi. Great reporting.

There are about 45 embeds in Iraq right now, primarily the U.S. and U.K. From achart I'm looking at now, there will be two other reporters at Ramadi when I'mthere; one from CBS (though I assume he has a camera crew) and one from the AP.The great plurality, of course, are in Baghdad. As I blogged previously, it's abit more comfy and safe staying right here. Besides, this is where almost all ofthe crowd-killing suicide bombing goes on.

To most reporters, the war comprises nothing BUT such attacks so why bother going with the troops and being where the fighting is? Never mind that Ramadi is probably supplying and training most of those suicide bombers. Such is the American journalist mentality.

Franklin Raff, senior executive producer at Radio America, was embedded and asked the following question by an Iraqi Army officer of high rank: "Why do you people not tell our story? Frank was embedded in Baghdad, Sadr City, Fallujah, and a series of remote combat outposts and forward operations bases in the Sunni Triangle and this is his story

Why do you people not tell our story? Why do you not say what is going on?Why do you come to our country and see what is happening, you see theschools and the hospitals and you see the markets and you eat with Sunni andShia soldiers – everybody eats together, everybody works together –you seethat Saddam is gone forever and we are free to speak and complain. You seewe are working and eating together and fighting together ..

The rest of the Dawn Patrol at Mudville Gazette

From the Milblog Wire