So Wrong for So Long: How the Press, the Pundits--and the President--Failed on Iraq

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So Wrong for So Long: How the Press, the Pundits--and the President--Failed on Iraq

by Greg Mitchell (Goodreads Author), Bruce Springsteen (Preface), Joseph L. Galloway (Foreword)

4.0 of 5 stars 4.00 · rating details · 24 ratings · 5 reviews

"Read this book. Twice." -- BILL MOYERS

“Worthy of shelving alongside the best of the Iraq books.”-- KIRKUS REVIEWS

With a new Introduction and lengthy Afterword, updated to March 26, 2013. Preface by Bruce Springsteen.

In early 2003, Greg Mitchell was one of the few mainstream journalists to seriously question the stated reasons for invading Iraq. In the years since, he has...more "Read this book. Twice." -- BILL MOYERS

“Worthy of shelving alongside the best of the Iraq books.”-- KIRKUS REVIEWS

With a new Introduction and lengthy Afterword, updated to March 26, 2013. Preface by Bruce Springsteen.

In early 2003, Greg Mitchell was one of the few mainstream journalists to seriously question the stated reasons for invading Iraq. In the years since, he has repeatedly challenged the media to probe its conduct and misconduct in covering the war.

Now, he traces the conflict -- from the "run-up" to the "surge" and beyond -- and the many media, and political failures, in this updated edition. In a new Introduction and Afterword he traces the debate and the tragedies right up to the end of March 2013 and controversies surrounding the 10th anniversary of the start of the war. The author outlines the many lessons for today, amid new concerns about the current "drone war" and the alleged Iranian nuclear.threat.

Greg Mitchell served as the editor of the influential magazine Editor & Publisher from 2001 to 2009, and now writes daily for The Nation. He is the author of more than a dozen books, including "The Campaign of the Century," winner of the Goldsmith Book Prize. As the Iraq war spun out of control, Mitchell was repeatedly ahead of the curve in intensely scrutinizing both the president and the press--and the controversies swirling around Judith Miller, Donald Rumsfeld, Pat Tillman, Valerie Plame, Bradley Manning, and numerous other figures.

His book is a unique history of the entire war. From writing early warnings that anticipated a long and bloody war, to analyzing Stephen Colbert's in-his-face mockery of George W. Bush, Greg Mitchell explores how we got into the war in Iraq--and why it took so long for us to get out. Against this backdrop, Mitchell is the rare journalist who has seen it all with clear eyes. In the new edition of "So Wrong for So Long, " he tells the whole story for the first time.

“Greg Mitchell has given us a razor-sharp critique of how the media and the government connived in one of the great blunders of American foreign policy. Every aspiring journalist, every veteran, every pundit—and every citizen who cares about the difference between illusion and reality, propaganda and the truth, and looked to the press to help keep them separate—should read this book. Twice.”—BILL MOYERS

“The profound failure of the American press with regard to the Iraq War may very well be the most significant political story of this generation. Greg Mitchell has established himself as one of our country's most perceptive media critics, and here he provides invaluable insight into how massive journalistic failures enabled the greatest strategic disaster in the nation's history.”—GLENN GREENWALD, author of "How Would a Patriot Act?"

"Excellent book!" -- BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN

"Greg Mitchell makes it clear that Iraq is a case study in bad judgment, from the misguided moves of an administration blinded by its zealotry to a complacent media that too often acted as an extension of the White House press office. Read it and weep; read it and get enraged; read it and make sure it doesn't happen again."—ARIANNA HUFFINGTON

"Anyone who cares about the integrity of the American media should read this book. Greg Mitchell asks tough questions about the Iraq war that should have been asked long ago, in a poignant, patriotic, and thoughtful dissection of our war in Iraq. Mitchell names names and places blame on those who’ve blundered. Examining the most complex issue of our time, he connects the dots like no one else has."—PAUL RIECKHOFF, Executive Director, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America(less)

Kindle Edition, 320 pages

Published March 4th 2008 by Union Square Press

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Dec 27, 2008 Dave Metge rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: bd-s-best, nonfiction

A collection of columns and a retrospective look at how the Iraq/Afghan war was framed in the context of post-911 and terrorism.
Learned or relearned:
1. Liberal media bias was a myth- A majority, as an American society, mostly bought and supported the run up to war either directly (volunteering or + spin stories) or indirectly (silence, resignation) because we wanted to both believe that Saddam has WMD and thought there were some links to 911.

1A. A cursory examination of history and knowledge of...more

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Jan 25, 2010 Christina rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: nonfictionread

I am saddened to say that I discovered the fabulous Editors & Publishers website *just* before it closed shop. It is being re-launched under the same name, but without the brilliant editor who put together this compilation of E&P essays.

The essays trace a time line from 2003-2007 detailing the very LACK of a liberal bias in the nations newspapers. Not only that, but just a complete lack of willingness to get a story RIGHT no matter what sort of bias might be perceived. It's like they wer...more

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Jan 10, 2009 Mindy rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: everyone

Recommended to Mindy by: Saw it on the "new" shelf at the library

Shelves: politics

Mostly, I found this book compelling and read it in just a few sittings (which for me in my crazy household is a big deal). The book is a compilation of editorials from Editors & Publishers and critiques the press coverage of the Iraq War. Reading press about the press from an insider was enlightening and I found his writing style to be engaging and entertaining, even while the subject matter was decidedly not.

One downside to this book--the fifth star that I didn't give--was how the author m...more

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Mar 27, 2009 Meredyth rated it 5 of 5 stars

Why we need to think for ourselves..not jump on talking head bandwagons when we send our men and women into war.
Use alternative media...do not buy into fear so easily..
learn from history.
It is like a greek tragedy repeating itself...read, and get informed. Press Your Government for answers.

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May 13, 2010 Julie Christiano rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: stopped-reading

And they call it a liberal media. They sure failed then with the lead up to Iraq--- and this adds much to what we already suspected/knew.

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About Greg Mitchell

Greg Mitchell (born 1947) is the author of more than a dozen books and currently blogs on the media and politics,, for The Nation. and at his own blog, Pressing Issjes. He was the editor of Editor & Publisher (E&P), from 2002 to the end of 2009, and long ago was executive editor at the legendary Crawdaddy. His book "The Campaign of the Century" won the Goldsmith Book Prize and "Tricky Dick...more

More about Greg Mitchell...

Books by Greg Mitchell

The Campaign of the Century: Upton Sinclair's Race for Governor of California and the Birth of Media Politics

Tricky Dick and the Pink Lady : Richard Nixon vs Helen Gahagan Douglas-Sexual Politics and the Red Scare, 1950

Atomic Cover-Up: Two U.S. Soldiers, Hiroshima & Nagasaki, and The Greatest Movie Never Made

The Age of WikiLeaks: From Collateral Murder to Cablegate (and Beyond)

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