function onPlayerReadyVidible(e){'undefined'!=typeof HPTrack&&HPTrack.Vid.Vidible_track(e)}!function(e,i){if(e.vdb_Player){if('object'==typeof commercial_video){var a='',o='m.fwsitesection='+commercial_video.site_and_category;if(a+=o,commercial_video['package']){var c='&m.fwkeyvalues=sponsorship%3D'+commercial_video['package'];a+=c}e.setAttribute('vdb_params',a)}i(e.vdb_Player)}else{var t=arguments.callee;setTimeout(function(){t(e,i)},0)}}(document.getElementById('vidible_1'),onPlayerReadyVidible); Legendary news anchorDan Rather had some strong words for journalists whofawned over theU.S. airstrike in Syria this week while asking few critical questions.The number of members of the press who have lauded the actions last night as presidential is concerning, Rather wrote in a Facebook post on Friday. War must never be considered a public relations operation. It is not a way for an Administration to gain a narrative. It is a step into a dangerous unknown and its full impact is impossible to predict, especially in the immediate wake of the first strike.Cable news personalities on Friday seemed to equate the legitimacy of a U.S. president with dropping bombs. CNNs Fareed Zakaria stated that Donald Trump became president of the United States when the strikes started, while The Washington Posts David Ignatius said on MSNBC that the commander in chief had put pure more umph, more credibility back into American power. MSNBCs Brian Williams went so far as to call the Tomahawk missiles ' which state-run Syrian media reported killed at least nine people, including four childrenbeautiful.Rather pointed out that no matter what someones opinion on whether the airstrike was the correct course of action, the medias job is to ask difficult questions, not drool over the spectacle of war:The role of the press is to ask hard questions. There is ample evidence that this Administration needs to face deep scrutiny. The lies we have heard, the chaos in governance, and the looming questions about ties with Russia - itself a major player in Syria - demand that the press treat this latest action with healthy skepticism. Perhaps it was the right thing to do. Perhaps a strong and wise policy will emerge. But that judgement is still definitely hanging in the balance.Read Rathers whole post below. As Fusion editor Alex Pareene noted last month, equating dropping bombs with being presidential is especially dangerous in the era of Trump, who has demonstrated repeatedly that he cares deeply about how hes treated on TV. The Intercepts Glenn Greenwald made a similar point in an article published after the latest strikes. And some journalists, like MSNBCs Chris Matthews, suggested that the strike could have been a calculated move on Trumps part to turn press coverage in his favor.CORRECTION: This article has been updated to correct a sentence that mischaracterized a point made in The Intercept article. -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
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