Embedded reporters create the illusion of real time coverage of the war. But there is a great deal that we do not know, and are not being told. Of course, the reporters themselves are careful not to reveal too much about their positions and objectives. But here’s a more striking example of major gaps in our knowledge of what’s going on. Right now, there’s a major story headlining the Fox News website. Reportedly (as The Corner picked up on earlier), a convoy of 1,000 Republican Guard vehicles is headed for an attack on Marines who are already worn down by intense fighting with irregulars around Nasiriyah.
If true, the report of a massive Republican Guard convoy headed for our Marines at Nasiriyah is a hugely important development. It would mean an audacious effort to throw us on the defensive–perhaps even forcing a fallback by forward units that might have to come to the aid of the Marines. If this report is true, it’s hard to believe we haven’t already dispatched an armada of bombers, helicopters, or A-10’s to knock out the convoy. Yet, despite headlining this extraordinary report on its own website, Fox News TV seems to have nothing to say about this apparently major development in the war. Maybe the report itself is untrue. It’s hard to believe that a Republican Guard convoy would expose itself to American air dominance. But if the report is true, then we are facing a news blackout (entirely justified) on a massively important turn in this battle. Either way, all this apparently up to date war reporting is anything but a real time account of what’s happening.