The Los Angeles Times reports that the American government has been planting stories in the Iraqi press that promote the idea of Iraqi democracy and self-rule. The American government adopted this strategy in Iraq despite it having been declared illegal in the United States in the spring of 2005 and having spent millions of dollars to properly train Iraqi journalists in freedom of the press.

The Pentagon hired the Lincoln Group, a public relations firm, to translate articles from the American military into Arabic and transmit them to Iraqi publications and advertising agencies. Occassionaly, articles were taken from other publications translated verbatim without proper sourcing.

During the winter of 2005, it was revealed that the Bush administration had been selling government "news" broadcasts to television stations without making it clear that the messages had come from the government. This practice was declared illegal.

It was also found that the government was paying journalists to speak favorably of government programs.

In Iraq, the government via the Lincoln Group, has also been paying about 12 Iraqi journalists who had not spoken out against the occupation.

Vice president of the International Center for Journalists Patrick Butler said of the government's strategy, "Ethically, it's indefensible. You show the world you're not living by the principles you profess to believe in, and you lose all credibility."

Source: Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, The Guardian