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This war is a peculiar thing. In a natural disaster, most of us can agree which Web sites would be helpful. But in this conflict, nothing is clear. To some Americans, we are fighting overseas to liberate Iraqis from a monstrous oppressor. To others, it seems like a naked grab by a lone superpower for the second-largest oil field in the world. To many Arabs, Muslims in particular, U.S. military action in Iraq is tantamount to an assault in a holy war.
All sides are certain of the moral correctness of their beliefs. Their intense emotions make the concept of reporting the "news" difficult. One person's unbiased story is another's flagrant propaganda.
As Kinsey Wilson, vice president of USAToday.com, noted recently, "The best [Web] sites can move quickly to develop a story in multiple directions, add depth and detail, and give readers their own pathways to explore."
In other words, the Web offers "news" for every persuasion.
The Best Mainstream Media
As I say, everyone has a right to his or her own opinion, especially on the Internet. Here is a very short list of the news outlets that i find the most useful.
MSNBC.com
http://msnbc.com
This NBC/Microsoft hybrid is doing everything well in delivering news of this war. The latest war news headlines scroll in JavaScript on the top of the splash page. On the right is a list of about nine major "Target: Iraq" hyperlinks. Scroll down to click into free video feeds, including a live downtown Baghdad-cam with sound: "Boom! Boom!" [http://www.msnbc.com/m/lv/de fault.asp]; CNN.com and ABC.com also offer streaming video, but they charge for it. Newsweek, an MSNBC partner, offers a link to its "Targeting Baghdad" interactive satellite map. That's right. Click on a target name to zoom in on a close-up view of possible Tomahawk missile bait. MSNBC.com offers links to its other partners, too: Washingtonpost. com, Microsoft Encarta articles about war and the Middle East, and the content of Microsoft's sassy online magazine, Slate. Find links to war-related Web logs here, too [http://www.msnbc.com/ news/809307.asp].
The New York Times:
International Special
http://www.nytimes.com/pages/ world/worldspecial/index. html
This special edition of the Times Web site is devoted to complete coverage of the Iraqi conflict. First, read a summary of the day's war-related events. Then,...