Revelations that President Bush proposed bombing Al-Jazeera, the Qatar-based Arabic satellite station stunned the world. But should it have? The U.S. since it launched its war on Iraq has often singled out Al-Jazeera's coverage as anti-American. What's anti-American about it? Al-Jazeera reports on the war from the perspective of Iraqis who see their country occupied. And crucially Al-Jazeera, unlike the corporate U.S. networks, has journalists who are unembedded and speak Arabic, a handy language to know. The role of the corporate media in promoting the war and being a conduit for a fusillade of lies has to mark one of the appalling low points of American journalism.

Robert Fisk
Robert Fisk, based in Beirut, is the Middle East correspondent for "The Independent." He is the author of "Pity the Nation: The Abduction of Lebanon." He is winner of the Amnesty International UK Press Award and the Lannan Prize for Cultural Freedom. His latest book is "The Great War for Civilization"