We don't need the Newsweek story about desecration of the Koran. Harpers ran the same story long ago, and has much more credible evidence. (The story has currently been bumped to the front page of their website, I can't find a permalink for it though.)
Jay Rosen has a post complaining about the slim evidence that newsweek used to publish its story (via majikthise). Rosen points out that the newsweek reporters are five levels of unnamed sources away form the event they describe, that is, an unnamed source told an unnamed source ... to the fifth power. This means that we the readers are six degrees of separtation from the story, and can only rely on on Newsweek's say so. Rosen correctly points out that this is shitty journalism.
But who cares! Harpers reprinted the testimony of a named source, "Daniel Rothenberg, an American human-rights researcher" who interviewed an eyewitnes "a twenty-one-year-old Afghan man whose name is withheld for his protection." We, the reader, are one degree of separation away from the story. We are hearing the exact testimony of Rothenberg, who is using a source he will not name. And no one should expect Rothernberg to name his source. The poor man was tortured and might be tortured again.
It is time for all people of good conscience to denounce the crusaders who are running this country.
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