Tonight (Sunday, September 18, 2005), 60 Minutes aired a segment entitled "Life in Baghdad," hosted by Scott Pelley and produced by Shawn Efran. The story was nothing but the bleakest of portraits of life in the city of Baghdad. The story? Violence, fear, despair: repeat.
However, unless you were paying close attention to Pelley's introduction to the story, you may have missed the fact that the segment originally aired nearly one year ago (On 60 Minutes II, October 6, 2004)! ("Last fall," as host Pelley put it.)
Well, a lot has happened since last fall! Free elections! A stronger Iraqi security force! A forthcoming constitution!
Has life improved in Baghdad since last year? 60 Minutes doesn't want to tell us. (On the other hand, if they don't want to tell us, that could be a sign that things are getting better.)
Do you want to read about the "Life in Baghdad" segment? Good luck. If you go to the 60 Minutes web site, you will find texts about the other two stories they aired this evening (a Ricky Williams profile and a profile on the issue of abstinence), but you will find nothing about the "Life in Baghdad" segment. Even a search in the CBS archives (for "Life in Baghdad") returns nothing to read.
