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CNN Live At Daybreak

International Wrap: Eye on the World

Aired October 14, 2003 - 06:40   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: OK, on to a mystery, who wrote those letters that were supposed to have been from U.S. soldiers in Iraq?
Senior international editor David Clinch, have they solved the mystery?

DAVID CLINCH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: Hey, Carol.

Well, yes, actually, we have. We have done a bit of digging. We did this story yesterday in this segment. It actually turned out to be one of the bigger stories then throughout the day yesterday. A letter writing campaign to local newspapers around the country here, apparently letters written by individual soldiers in Iraq from a particular unit talking about their successes there. Turns out, they didn't write the letters. Their commander wrote the letters with his officers, showed them the letters, they signed them. Some of them did, some of them didn't, and they were sent to the papers and published.

COSTELLO: So it was a voluntary thing by...

CLINCH: Well to a certain degree.

COSTELLO: ... this commanding officer?

CLINCH: A certain degree. The commander, his name Commander Caraccilo of the Second Battalion, the 503rd Infantry near Kirkuk. His idea, the U.S. military there saying today it was a -- quote -- "nice idea, but badly executed." I think there was definitely a sense of embarrassment on the military leadership's part about this. Because while I think everybody, and I think particularly President Bush who has called often the other media the filter for news and only concentrating on the bad news, while I think they are interested in having the good news put out there, it is clear that this commander has stepped over a line here.

I mean if you saw a letter from a U.S. soldier in Iraq in a paper now, would you trust it? I don't think I would, and that's really the point. I think I called it yesterday an insult to those U.S. soldiers who are out there and I think it is. I mean yes there is good news to be told, but I think they deserve to tell it themselves, and they also deserve the chance to say there is bad news. And we need to give them the opportunity to do both. So an unfortunate incident on behalf of the U.S., that particular commander.

COSTELLO: And they won't be doing it again.

CLINCH: Right. OK.

COSTELLO: All right. David Clinch, many thanks, we appreciate it.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired October 14, 2003 - 06:40   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: OK, on to a mystery, who wrote those letters that were supposed to have been from U.S. soldiers in Iraq?
Senior international editor David Clinch, have they solved the mystery?

DAVID CLINCH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: Hey, Carol.

Well, yes, actually, we have. We have done a bit of digging. We did this story yesterday in this segment. It actually turned out to be one of the bigger stories then throughout the day yesterday. A letter writing campaign to local newspapers around the country here, apparently letters written by individual soldiers in Iraq from a particular unit talking about their successes there. Turns out, they didn't write the letters. Their commander wrote the letters with his officers, showed them the letters, they signed them. Some of them did, some of them didn't, and they were sent to the papers and published.

COSTELLO: So it was a voluntary thing by...

CLINCH: Well to a certain degree.

COSTELLO: ... this commanding officer?

CLINCH: A certain degree. The commander, his name Commander Caraccilo of the Second Battalion, the 503rd Infantry near Kirkuk. His idea, the U.S. military there saying today it was a -- quote -- "nice idea, but badly executed." I think there was definitely a sense of embarrassment on the military leadership's part about this. Because while I think everybody, and I think particularly President Bush who has called often the other media the filter for news and only concentrating on the bad news, while I think they are interested in having the good news put out there, it is clear that this commander has stepped over a line here.

I mean if you saw a letter from a U.S. soldier in Iraq in a paper now, would you trust it? I don't think I would, and that's really the point. I think I called it yesterday an insult to those U.S. soldiers who are out there and I think it is. I mean yes there is good news to be told, but I think they deserve to tell it themselves, and they also deserve the chance to say there is bad news. And we need to give them the opportunity to do both. So an unfortunate incident on behalf of the U.S., that particular commander.

COSTELLO: And they won't be doing it again.

CLINCH: Right. OK.

COSTELLO: All right. David Clinch, many thanks, we appreciate it.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com