LA Times offended at pro-American articles in Iraq

If this doesn't qualify as gall, I'm not sure what does. From the AFP:

The US military is secretly paying Iraqi newspapers to print stories written by US soldiers in an effort to polish the image of the American mission in Iraq, a US newspaper reported.

US military "information operations" troops have written the articles, which are translated into Arabic and placed in Baghdad newspapers with the help of the Lincoln Group, a Washington-based defense contractor, according to The Los Angeles Times.

OK, the practice of planting stories is at the very least questionable, to be sure. It borders on propaganda. However, read this part (and avoid drinking anything while you do it, lest your beverage project from your nostrils):

Many articles are presented to Iraqi newspapers as unbiased news accounts written and reported by independent journalists.

Remove the word "Iraqi", and you've got a perfect portrayal of the MSM in this country: a bunch of slanted editorials masquerading as news "stories", written and reported by leftist journalists pretending to be "independent" and unbiased. The main difference is that in America, the MSM does this for the left for free. Maybe that is why the LAT is getting its panties in a bunch...they haven't been able to parlay their partnership with the left into moolah?

Don't resume drinking your beverage just yet...there's more:

Some senior US military officers in Iraq and at the Pentagon have criticized the operation, saying it could ruin the US military's credibility in other countries and with the US public.

That's exactly what the LAT and other insurgent-friendly and al Qaeda useful idiot MSM sources are hoping!

What's galling is that when the MSM gets planted stories from the left (including, but not limited to, the DNC), they run with the stories and think that it's fair. However, let the stories be America-friendly (and, by default implication, Bush-positive), and all hell breaks loose!