Should Republicans go ahead and add Supreme Court Justices to head off Democrats

Modern communications come to Iraq

Thomas P.M. Barnett:

...

But despite the dangers, there is no doubt that media connectivity in Iraq has emerged as the untold success story of Saddam's fall:

As the Western media focus on the uncertain results of last week's national elections, there's one story that has flown below the radar: The success of the Iraqi TV business.

Since the April 2003 ouster of Sadam Hussein, the area has seen the birth of 30 TV stations, the same number of radio stations and an estimated 180 newspapers.

The quality of the programming may be uneven, but Iraq's new media moguls have one thing in their favor; When your audience is afraid to go outside, it's good for ratings.

The immediate goals are prestige and entertainment. Entrepreneurs want to reach the people without government interference or propaganda. It's a boom town and folks are moving in.

The best bit on this: one station backed by the U.S. is repurposing Uday Hussein's vast collection of Western movies and soap operas for domestic consumption (soaps are loved the world over).

Each of Iraq's 18 provinces has its own TV station, as does "each ethnic community from the Kurds to the Assyrians to every political party." Then there's the extra dozen or so satellite providers.

As one government spokesman (Iraqi) puts it, "There is hardly a house without a satellite dish and there is hardly a neighborhood without some kind of local broadcasting."

What changes? Everything. As the article notes, "While heavily controlled state media and cultural institutions previously pushed pro-Hussein propaganda, the order of the day now is unprecendented freedom of expression."

There is more. It will be difficult to put this Genie back in the bottle for those who fear freedom.