In 2006, CJR staff writer Paul McLeary reported from Iraq on how the press was doing its job there. These are all of the installments in his series.
02/06/2006: In Iraq, the Untold Stories Pile Up, One by One by One – FALLUJAH, IRAQ – The fact is, with the press in Iraq stretched thin, the grinding, day-to-day reality of the war is essentially being forgotten
02/02/2006: Embedded with a Night Patrol in Fallujah – FALLUJAH, IRAQ – Curfew falls at 11 p.m. each night, after which anyone found out on the street is considered a target
02/01/2006: On Patrol In a Tense Fallujah – FALLUJAH, IRAQ – No more than a minute after leaving the base, we swung a hard left and were bouncing down the streets of Fallujah, kicking up a dust storm in our wake
01/30/2006: With Echo Company of the Second Marine Division – FALLUJAH, IRAQ – The “media tent” at Camp Fallujah may be nothing more than a couple of dusty bunk beds with muddy pillows, but the chow isn’t half bad
01/27/2006: “The Party’s Pretty Much Over” – BAGHDAD, IRAQ – As media outlets pull out of Iraq, the journalists that remain are a hardened bunch, angry at their inability to move around—and becoming increasingly isolated
01/25/2006: “The Party’s Pretty Much Over” – BAGHDAD, IRAQ – Chivalry and black-framed glasses may fly in New York City, but it’s a different game in Baghdad.
01/20/2006: Getting Out of Baghdad Is As Hard As Getting In – BAGHDAD, IRAQ – For reporters, Iraq turns out to be a very small world
01/19/2006: Neil Cavuto Doesn’t Look Any Better from Iraq – BAGHDAD, IRAQ – Camp Stryker is a place where travel plans go to die.
01/18/2006: Further Adventures in (Attempted) Embedding – “I hate how the media is covering this war,” a Kellogg Brown & Root contractor at the Kuwait airport snarled when he found out I was a journalist.
01/17/2006: Kuwait, Coffee, and C-130’s – CJR Daily’s correspondent, on his way to Baghdad, gets a military-sanctioned tour of Kuwait City—including plenty of Starbucks franchises.
Paul McLeary is a former CJR staff writer. Since 2008, he has covered the Pentagon for Foreign Policy, Defense News, Breaking Defense, and other outlets. He is currently a defense reporter for Politico.