The New York Times came under fire on Wednesday for running what critics characterized as « uncontested propaganda » in the form of an op-ed by notorious war profiteer and Blackwater founder Erik Prince.
As in his other prominent op-eds that ran recently in the Wall Street Journal and USA Today, Prince—the brother of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos—pitched his plan to largely privatize the 16-year war in Afghanistan. Many have denounced this for-profit scheme—which would place the war in the hands of an American « Viceroy » and private mercenaries—as tantamount to « colonialism. »
On Wednesday, though, commentators began directing their ire at the outlet that « uncritically » provided a platform for Prince’s « advertorial. »
« Why is the New York Times op-ed page publishing Erik Prince’s sales pitch for more mercenaries? » asked The New Republic‘s Sarah Jones.
The scheme being proposed « would make Prince, who now owns another private military company, Academi, very rich, » Jones added. « The conflicts of interest are glaring, and yet this advertisement was given pride of place in the opinion section. »
when outlets like the Times uncritically publish pieces like Prince's, it further blurs the line between opinion and straight propaganda pic.twitter.com/nQFyc70EWK
— Sarah Jones (@onesarahjones) August 30, 2017
Further, as Slate‘s Ben Mathis-Lilley observed, Prince’s Times bio failed entirely to highlight these conflicts of interest.
While the bio « notes that [Prince is] the chairman of the Frontier Services Group, it doesn’t make clear that the Frontier Services Group’s business involves selling ‘force protection’ to clients in countries including Afghanistan. »
Related | Blackwater Founder’s Plan To Privatize Afghan War Gains Ground
As many observed following Prince’s Wall Street Journal op-ed, it is hardly surprising that a war profiteer sees an opportunity to profit off a war with no end in sight.
The real problem, argues GQ‘s Jay Willis, « is not that Prince is taking advantage of an opportunity to shill for his latest collection of well-compensated mercenaries. It’s that the New York Times is giving Prince space on its opinion pages in order to do so. »
Freelance reporter Paul Blest noted that the Times « allow[ed] Erik Prince to grovel for a new contract » in its opinion section « almost ten years to the day » of the 2007 Nisour Square massacre—the killing of 17 Iraqis by Blackwater security guards.
Others similarly criticized the Times on social media:
https://twitter.com/ggreenwald/status/902881552429920256
Hey @nytimes if you'll run this Erik Prince advertorial I got a killer "Why Profs Should Be Worshipped Like Gods" op-ed so please DM me. pic.twitter.com/MZIAiQzDf5
— Daniel W. Drezner (@dandrezner) August 30, 2017
https://twitter.com/anastasiakeeley/status/902904378130124800
Top photo: Blackwater founder Erik Prince testifies before a House committee examining the mission and performance of private military contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan, Oct. 2, 2007. (Susan Walsh/AP)
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