CNN [last week] showed the video of the beheading of American journalist Steven Sotloff just as it had shown the video of the beheading of James Foley last month. Before showing the video of Sotloff, a CNN news anchor cautioned that the video was distressing but that she would show it anyway, as Americans needed to know how awful ISIS is.
Fair enough, it would seem, but consider that right after showing the video of the beheading, the anchor had one of her guest speakers point out that ISIS fighters were sending out such videos in the hope of recruiting more jihadists from around the world. Yet, CNN, obviously aware of the effect such videos have on impressionable minds, went ahead and showed the Sotloff video several more times. How does that help U.S. President Barack Obama?
The opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are the writer's own and do not necessarily reflect the policies of The Japan Times.
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