Tonight at 10 pm Eastern, MSNBC will be showing NBC reporter Richard Engel "War Zone Diary". Many media outlets are already saying that it a must see. In Engel's own words, you know that this is going to be powerful stuff.
"As long as the soldiers are here, I think reporters have an absolute obligation to go out with them," he says. "Otherwise, people back home will have no idea what the war actually looks like from the ground level, the troops."
This hour long documentary could be more powerful that an Olbermann Special Comment.
If anything, this may be the documentary that finally tells Bill O'Reilly to either put up or shut up.
Engel makes these points simply, without complaint or exaggeration. The personal angles enrich the program. A similar approach elevated Bob Woodruff's recent ABC special on his miraculous recovery from war injuries.
What matters is that the programs transcend each man's story. Woodruff drew attention to undetected brain injuries and veterans' poor care. Engel puts war reporting in context in this unpolished, intense hour.
Engel has drawn criticism from Bill O'Reilly of Fox News Channel for being anti-war. O'Reilly's critique grew from a feud with MSNBC's Keith Olbermann into a withering assessment of NBC News overall.
War Zone Diary plays like a timely, refreshing rejoinder to simplistic punditry. Engel acknowledges that most of the stories he has reported from Iraq have been negative. Two reasons he cites: The war has not gone according to plan, and Iraq is exporting terrorism rather than democracy.
What is the saying I am looking for?
I would rather you just said thank you, and went on your way, Otherwise, I suggest you pick up a weapon, and stand a post. Either way, I don't give a damn what you think you are entitled to.
I think Engel has more balls and courage than Bill-O could ever have and tonight America is going to see that.