Finally, some critical reports on Gaza from the NYT

Kudos to NY Times journalist Ethan Bronner for his report on Israel's clampdown on the media who are trying to cover the disaster in Gaza. Quite simply, despite a ruling from its supreme court, Israeli military authorities are not allowing any reporters in, and when asked why, they are very up-front in saying that they are determined to control the information and shape the message.

Israel's supporters in the US have harped for years on how Israel shares so many "democratic" values with the U.S. Remembering how much the Bush administration has tried to shape and limit media coverage in its "war on terror" (which, says Israel, it too is fighting in Gaza) . . . point taken, I suppose.