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CNN, Clarissa Ward Work With Nusra Terrorist To Create Propaganda, Try To Cover Tracks After The Fact

13-7-2017 < Activist Post 82 742 words
 

By Brandon Turbeville


Fresh on the heels of resignations of several CNN reporters due to their exaggerations, breach of ethics, and outright lies regarding the Trump-Russia story as well as the fact that a CNN in producer was caught on camera saying that the Russia story was “Bullshit” and that the “news organization” was indeed engaged in a witch hunt against Donald Trump, the embattled propaganda organization is now facing scrutiny over its close relationship with terrorists and the manner in which it presented them to the general public.


The particular reporter in question this time is the infamous anti-Assad, pro-terrorist Clarissa Ward who built her career based upon her incessant lie-riddled propaganda regarding the “crimes against humanity” committed by Bashar al-Assad’s government and the “bravery” of the Western-backed terrorists. Ward has long come under fire from informed observers in the alternative media and the poster boy of much of her reporting, Bilal Abdul Kareem, has even been criticized by more independent outlets like AlterNet.


A recent piece by Ben Norton and Max Blumenthal, whose record on Syria has been better than most MSM writers but who also still leaves the path of imperialism open in many of his pieces, brought to light the obvious connection not only between Kareem and Ward but between CNN and the terrorist organizations it has so undyingly supported since the very beginning of the Syrian crisis.







Many of these deeper connections have come to light as a result of Kareem’s anger at CNN for leaving him out of the credits for its propaganda series against the Syrian government. Kareem’s irritation is the result of the fact that the Undercover In Syria documentary, which both he and Clarissa Ward played a major role in, won the Peabody Award. However, while CNN and Clarissa Ward were showered with praise and Ward given the opportunity to give speeches about human rights to rooms full of bow-tie-wearing propagandists, Kareem was not only left out of the spotlight, his name was reduced to a mere mention in the fine print (literally) of the Peabody press release and CNN apparently didn’t even mention his name at all. The reason for slighting Kareem was not fully addressed by the organization but it is abundantly clear that CNN did not want to draw any more attention to the fact that their documentary was produced with the help and in concert with a known terrorist.


Kareem spoke out about being slighted on his Twitter feed. “Piece I filmed w/CNN (Undercover in Syria) won Overseas Press Club & Peabody awards but CNN “forgot” to mention me. But I’m smiling!,” he tweeted.


“This was with CNN and their correspondent Clarissa Ward, which I have big-time respect for, big-time respect as a journalist, as a person,” he added. “This Undercover in Syria, you can Google it — it won the prestigious Peabody Award, and it won the prestigious Overseas Press Club Award, which are basically the highest awards in journalism for international reporting. Now, [CNN] barely mentioned my name! I’m telling you, somehow CNN must have forgotten that I was the one that filmed it, I guess they forgot that.”


Kareem is mostly correct. CNN didn’t just simply consult with Kareem, interview him, or use his connections to get the inside scoop, they contracted with Kareem and his media organization On The Ground News. After the propaganda film was finished, however, CNN obviously didn’t want the bad PR of having hired a terrorist to film and facilitate their documentary.


Bilal Abdul Kareem


Al-Arabiya reported on June 7 that Kareem had joined al-Nusra officially in 2012. Kareem denied this claim and, in a Facebook video, stated, “I am not, nor have I ever been, nor do I need to be a part of al-Qaeda. I don’t have any need for that.” He also threatened legal action against al-Arabiya.






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