Army Runs J-School

The U.S. Army is training Iraqis, many of them translators, to be journalists. In workshops taught by military public affairs officers, students learn "things like news gathering, writing fair and balanced stories, interviewing techniques, ethics, the Associated Press Style Guide, and the role of the press in a free society," according to the U.S. Army website "Soldier Stories." "[The students] met for six hours a day, six days a week for about five weeks. Since completing the workshop, the writers have produced stories geared toward Iraqi readers about how Soldiers are helping the Iraqi people, positive changes to the country's economy and the history of their culture. In addition to 'Baghdad Now' -- which is printed in English and Arabic -- their stories have appeared in the 1st AD's 'Ironside' Magazine and on several U.S. military Web sites."