[DblBarrelJ]

There was nothing closed door about it. You misread my point. The point is, these guys are constantly accused of crimes, and always cleared.

Why does this happen?

#1. Perception - These guys are labeled as terrorists by a few nutjobs in the media, and the treatment is given to them so often that the average person buys into it.

#2. Credibility - I've become convinced any journalist who happens to be in Iraq will take down any and every story any Iraqi civilian tells them as they walk down the streets concerning the US Military, or Blackwater, publish it verbatim, without even going through the basic journalistic process of finding three sources which agree before publishing, then call the street story "fact." Then the same journalist will become incredulous when the State Dept actually investigates and says "uhhh No."

Also, another point I'd like to make about articles such as the post article is that they're always filled with these mystical "anonymous sources".

I'll accept an anonymous source on rare occasion, but one thing I've learned from police work is that most "anonymous" sources want to remain anonymous for one of three reasons. Either they:

A) Are lying
B) Don't Exist
C) Fear for their lives

more often than not, in my experience, A and B are the popular choices.

While I whole heartedly support, and am a strong defender of the 1st amendment, that also comes with a price. You are absolutely free to print and say anything you so desire, but, when you lose credibility for doing so, it's not my problem.

Unfortunately, we live in a world where the media has become responsible for its own credibility, as the story I've linked in the OP will never be given headline coverage. Think about it. I'm not just talking Blackwater here, I'm talking news in general, when is the last time you've actually seen a news organization say "We were wrong, this is the truth" in an easily accessable fashion, rather than on the back of the "Living" section, right in between the Obituaries and the Personal Ads?