Negative U.S. media linked to increased insurgent attacks

Negative U.S. media linked to increased insurgent attacks
Washington Times
Researchers at Harvard say that publicly voiced doubts about the U.S. occupation of Iraq have a measurable “emboldenment effect” on insurgents there.
Periods of intense news media coverage in the United States of criticism about the war, or of polling about public opinion on the conflict, are followed by a small but quantifiable increases in the number of attacks on civilians and U.S. forces in Iraq, according to a study by Radha Iyengar, a Robert Wood Johnson Scholar in health policy research at Harvard and Jonathan Monten of the Belfer Center at the university’s Kennedy School of Government.
The increase in attacks is more pronounced in areas of Iraq that have better access to international news media, the authors conclude in a report titled “Is There an ‘Emboldenment’ Effect? Evidence from the Insurgency in Iraq.”
The researchers studied data about insurgent attacks and U.S. media coverage up to November, tracking what they called “anti-resolve statements” by U.S. politicians and reports about American public opinion on the war.

“We find that in periods immediately after a spike in anti-resolve statements, the level of insurgent attacks increases,” says the study, published earlier this month by the National Bureau of Economic Research, a leading U.S. nonprofit economic research organization.

In Iraqi provinces that were broadly comparable in social and economic terms, attacks increased between 7 percent and 10 percent following what the researchers call “high-mention weeks,” like the two just before the November 2006 election.
The study also found that attacks increased more in parts of Iraq like Anbar province, where there is greater access to international news media, measured by the proportion of households with satellite TV, which its authors say increases the credibility of their findings.
The researchers conclude that the increases in attacks are a necessary cost of the way democratic societies fight wars and say they are concerned that the research may be seized upon by the Iraq war’s supporters to try and silence its critics.

“We are a little bit worried about that,” Mr. Monten said in an interview. “Our data suggests that there is a small, but measurable cost” to “anything that provides information about attitudes towards the war.”

Wild Thing’s comment………

Where do I begin at how much this has my blood boiling.
First let’s start with this……”Periods of intense news media coverage in the United States of criticism about the war…are followed by a small but quantifiable increases in the number of attacks on civilians and U.S. forces in Iraq”.
Any person with half a brain would KNOW that negative comments, negative press (media), politicians spewing BS about pulling out, anti-war protests, violence and protest at recruiting centers etc., politicians and the American haters like Code Pink, ANSWER, and others saying we are NOT winning when our military reports of tremendous success in so many areas, that the surge IS working …………… a person with a brain would know these things effect the war and give aide to the enemy!
So there is NO need to spend 1 second on some stupid study about it. What a total waste of time, and you just know these idiots got paid probably to do this kind of investigation and report on it.
Secondly……..”The increase in attacks is more pronounced in areas of Iraq that have better access to international news media”…..again anyone with a brain would know that the areas that have access to the media would hear of these people above that I mentioned and the things they have been saying and take it that they have friends in America that are on their side NOT on the side of the troops. How soon they forget that Saddam LOVED CNN and loved to watch it. That is why I post about the things Murtha, Reid and others say and call them what they are TRAITORS to America one and all, and that IMO they should be punished as anyone committing treason and being a traitor should be punished.
And third…… “concerned that the research may be seized upon by the Iraq war’s supporters to try and silence its critics.”…….they say they are worried about you and I, and wanting to silence the critics of the war when this information in their report is exposed. What on earth do they think the support the troops rallies are about.
What the heck do they think drives a blogger to never give up and want to share the awesome things our troops are doing since the communist media will not. Did they do a full investigation or not!?!?!? Because IF they did they would find out from Murtha and Reid and Pelosi, Code Pink , ANSWER and the rest of our enemy within that they have received tons of emails, tons of Fax’s, and phone calls of our protesting THEM, and how dangerous what they say and do is for our troops in harms way.
The many rallies that go on are to support the troops and to make sure that the voice of those of us in America is heard. That we appreciate the sacrifices and are aware of the danger our troops are in every day 24/7.
This is NOT the 60’s and early 70’s when we had no real internet, no blogs to get the word out, to plan rallies of support. We will never forget how our Vietnam Vets were treated, how the media and the vile leftie bunch I spoke of at the beginning of my comment existed back then and we had no real way of setting up our own rallies like today.
Then there are the numerous support the troops organizations we know of from being on the internet where we can find ways of giving more support to the troops too.
I swore to myself back during the Vietnam War, that NEVER AGAIN would the left have a voice without my fighting back, letting them know how I felt with all I am. From my fisrt visit to Nam, there were things a person could do back here at home. I remember back then how when a few soldiers got out of the hospitial a bunch of us drove up the coast in Calif. and put Hanoi Jane stickers in the urnials in the bathrooms along the drive up and back down the coast. heh heh
Today there are rallies, and t-shirts that a person can wear and it is fun to see how many get upset when they see me wear “the party of cut and run” with a few of the Dems on the front image. Or one of my favorite Marine t-shirts that says….” USMC Spring Break in Iraq, making it possible for the enemy to die for his country”.
And fourth, they say “Our data suggests that there is a small, but measurable cost” to “anything that provides information about attitudes towards the war.”
Oh my gosh, the lives of our troops is a small but measurable cost when negative remarks about the war are made? SMALL but measurable cost???????? This isn’t about the stock market for pete’s sake!
Ready on the right
Ready on the left
Ready on the firing line.