OUTREACH FOLLOWING NEWSWEEK'S RETRACTION OF ITS

UNCLAS ANKARA 002814

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KPAO KISL PREL
SUBJECT: OUTREACH FOLLOWING NEWSWEEK'S RETRACTION OF ITS
STORY ALLEGING KORAN DESECRATION AT GUANTANAMO

REF: STATE 90992


1. The Turkish media has been uncharacteristically
restrained in its coverage of the alleged desecration
incident at Guantanamo. News coverage since the claim was
first published in Newsweek has generally been factual and
balanced. Most papers reported on the demonstrations and
violence in Afghanistan sparked by the story, but they also
carried Secretary Rice's comments confirming that the charge
is being investigated and that desecration of the Koran or
any other holy book is antithetical to the principles on
which the United States was founded.


2. Weekend papers here also reported factually on Newsweek's
backtracking on the story, and several main papers
("Milliyet," "Cumhuriyet," and "Radikal") give extensive
coverage today to Newsweek's apology for misleading its
readers. Even Turkey's most influential Islamist-oriented
media outlets - the dailies "Yeni Safak" and "Zaman" - have
dealt with the issue fairly, including coverage of the
secretary's statement and Newsweek's subsequent retraction.

SIPDIS
There has been virtually no editorial commentary on the
issue, even among columnists who frequently engage in anti-
Americanism.


3. The Embassy has put the text of the Secretary's statement
on the embassy website in both English and Turkish. The
Ambassador will deliver reftel points tomorrow during a
scheduled meeting with MFA Undersecretary Tuygan. Given that
the allegation has not caused significant problems in the
Turkish public debate, we believe these steps are sufficient
at this point.

EDELMAN