K
Kickin' Ass and Takin' Names
Guest
There is a growing dispute over the veracity of reporting from Lebanon
by former Marine W. Thomas Smith, Jr. who is posting reports on his
blog, The Tank, published by the conservative website, National Review
Online (NRO). Smith is a supporter of the war in Iraq, and is
affiliated with two politically conservative organizations, the
Counterterrorism Research Center and the Family Security Foundation.
He is the executive editor of World Defense Review, and the co-author
of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Understanding Intelligent Design.
At question are two reports filed by Smith on The Tank -- reports
which appear to be designed to bolster support for the ongoing
presence of U.S troops in the Mideast.
Smith's reporting has given rise to the following points of
contention:
-- First: Smith's September 29 report that between 4,000-5,000
Hezbollah gunmen had "deployed to the Christian areas of Beirut in an
unsettling 'show of force.'"
-- Second: his September 25 report that "some 200-plus heavily armed
Hezbollah militiamen" occupied a "sprawling Hezbollah tent city" near
the Lebanese parliament.
In addition, Smith's critics contend that Smith's self-reported
exploits - if true -- endanger the press corps in the troubled region.
The Huffington Post contacted four well-regarded Middle East
reporters, who have characterized Smith's journalism as follows:
Michael Prothero, who has reported for Fortune, the Washington Times,
and Slate, wrote in an email:
"In his [Smith's] wildly entertaining postings, he describes kidnap
attempts, an armed incursion into Christian East Beirut by 5,000 armed
Hezbollah fighters that was missed by every journalist in town, he
also notes the presence of 200 armed Hezbollah fighters in downtown
Beirut 'laying siege' to the prime ministers office, recounts high-
speed car chases and 'armed recon operations' where he drives around
south Beirut taking pictures of Hezbollah installations, while
carrying weapons. In a word, this is all insane."
"He's a fabulist," wrote Chris Allbritton, who has reported from the
Middle East since 2002 for Time, Boston Globe, the San Francisco
Chronicle, the Washington Times, and the Newark Star-Ledger. According
to Allbritton, in an email to the Huffington Post, "[Smith's] claim
that 4,000 Hezbollah gunmen took over East Beirut at the end of
September simply never happened. Every journalist in town would have
pounced on that story, and he's the only one who noticed?"
A third reporter for a major U.S. magazine, who did not want his name
used because he did not want to become involved in a journalistic
controversy, wrote in an email to the Huffington Post:
"Mr. Smith also says that 4,000 armed Hezbollah fighters took up
positions in East Beirut one day this fall in a 'show of force'. This
would have been a major international news event and possibly the
start of the next Lebanese civil war. In January, unarmed opposition
supporters led by Hezbollah shut down roads in Beirut, and the event
sparked riots and led the news all over the world. And yet, Mr. Smith
is the only journalist in Lebanon to have found this story, as far as
I know. So why, with such a major scoop in his hands, does Smith
devote just a few lines in a blog post to it? Because it never
happened."
A fourth reporter, who works for a major media outlet and has
extensive experience reporting in the area, also asked to remain
anonymous, but emailed the Huffington Post:
"This guy is hilarious. Armed Hezbollah at the Serail? He must be
mistaking the Lebanese army at the gates - those 200 in the tents are
some middle class Hezbollees - who now come once a week to have a
smoke with their friends and get away from their wives."
Three of these four journalists also pointed to Smith's unprofessional
behavior, as he has described it on The Tank. These stories include a
October 20 report titled "CAPTURE THE FLAG!" in which Smith boasts: "I
snatched a Hezbollah flag -- the yellow banner with the green fist and
rifle -- from one of the enemy's strongholds in Lebanon recently. And
when I say stronghold, I literally mean a strong, heavily defended
battle position where the Lebanese Army and police dare not enter, and
I had to enter covertly....I hate those guys. Hezbollah, you'll
remember, murdered 241 of my brothers when they blew up the Marine
barracks in Beirut in 1983 when I was just a wee-rifleman in the
Corps."
Allbritton pointed out that. "By openly bragging about how he conducts
'reconnaissance' on Hezbollah 'strongholds' and describing what
weapons he's carrying, he's making it difficult for every journalist
here to do his or her job. We're all under suspicion anyway, and his
public cowboying doesn't help at all."
Prothero characterized Smith's journalism as "grossly irresponsible."
The third journalist wrote: "Mr. Smith's reporting contain pure
fabrications."
NRO editor Kathryn Jean Lopez acknowledged that some of Smith's work
is "misleading."
by former Marine W. Thomas Smith, Jr. who is posting reports on his
blog, The Tank, published by the conservative website, National Review
Online (NRO). Smith is a supporter of the war in Iraq, and is
affiliated with two politically conservative organizations, the
Counterterrorism Research Center and the Family Security Foundation.
He is the executive editor of World Defense Review, and the co-author
of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Understanding Intelligent Design.
At question are two reports filed by Smith on The Tank -- reports
which appear to be designed to bolster support for the ongoing
presence of U.S troops in the Mideast.
Smith's reporting has given rise to the following points of
contention:
-- First: Smith's September 29 report that between 4,000-5,000
Hezbollah gunmen had "deployed to the Christian areas of Beirut in an
unsettling 'show of force.'"
-- Second: his September 25 report that "some 200-plus heavily armed
Hezbollah militiamen" occupied a "sprawling Hezbollah tent city" near
the Lebanese parliament.
In addition, Smith's critics contend that Smith's self-reported
exploits - if true -- endanger the press corps in the troubled region.
The Huffington Post contacted four well-regarded Middle East
reporters, who have characterized Smith's journalism as follows:
Michael Prothero, who has reported for Fortune, the Washington Times,
and Slate, wrote in an email:
"In his [Smith's] wildly entertaining postings, he describes kidnap
attempts, an armed incursion into Christian East Beirut by 5,000 armed
Hezbollah fighters that was missed by every journalist in town, he
also notes the presence of 200 armed Hezbollah fighters in downtown
Beirut 'laying siege' to the prime ministers office, recounts high-
speed car chases and 'armed recon operations' where he drives around
south Beirut taking pictures of Hezbollah installations, while
carrying weapons. In a word, this is all insane."
"He's a fabulist," wrote Chris Allbritton, who has reported from the
Middle East since 2002 for Time, Boston Globe, the San Francisco
Chronicle, the Washington Times, and the Newark Star-Ledger. According
to Allbritton, in an email to the Huffington Post, "[Smith's] claim
that 4,000 Hezbollah gunmen took over East Beirut at the end of
September simply never happened. Every journalist in town would have
pounced on that story, and he's the only one who noticed?"
A third reporter for a major U.S. magazine, who did not want his name
used because he did not want to become involved in a journalistic
controversy, wrote in an email to the Huffington Post:
"Mr. Smith also says that 4,000 armed Hezbollah fighters took up
positions in East Beirut one day this fall in a 'show of force'. This
would have been a major international news event and possibly the
start of the next Lebanese civil war. In January, unarmed opposition
supporters led by Hezbollah shut down roads in Beirut, and the event
sparked riots and led the news all over the world. And yet, Mr. Smith
is the only journalist in Lebanon to have found this story, as far as
I know. So why, with such a major scoop in his hands, does Smith
devote just a few lines in a blog post to it? Because it never
happened."
A fourth reporter, who works for a major media outlet and has
extensive experience reporting in the area, also asked to remain
anonymous, but emailed the Huffington Post:
"This guy is hilarious. Armed Hezbollah at the Serail? He must be
mistaking the Lebanese army at the gates - those 200 in the tents are
some middle class Hezbollees - who now come once a week to have a
smoke with their friends and get away from their wives."
Three of these four journalists also pointed to Smith's unprofessional
behavior, as he has described it on The Tank. These stories include a
October 20 report titled "CAPTURE THE FLAG!" in which Smith boasts: "I
snatched a Hezbollah flag -- the yellow banner with the green fist and
rifle -- from one of the enemy's strongholds in Lebanon recently. And
when I say stronghold, I literally mean a strong, heavily defended
battle position where the Lebanese Army and police dare not enter, and
I had to enter covertly....I hate those guys. Hezbollah, you'll
remember, murdered 241 of my brothers when they blew up the Marine
barracks in Beirut in 1983 when I was just a wee-rifleman in the
Corps."
Allbritton pointed out that. "By openly bragging about how he conducts
'reconnaissance' on Hezbollah 'strongholds' and describing what
weapons he's carrying, he's making it difficult for every journalist
here to do his or her job. We're all under suspicion anyway, and his
public cowboying doesn't help at all."
Prothero characterized Smith's journalism as "grossly irresponsible."
The third journalist wrote: "Mr. Smith's reporting contain
fabrications."
NRO editor Kathryn Jean Lopez acknowledged that some of Smith's work
is "misleading."
