Arash Kamangir tipped me to this, pointing to a case where an Iranian news daily "accidentally" re-used a photo from November 2006 to illustrate Iran's latest war games. Imagine my surprise when, upon scanning the news wires, I see a photo that's almost exactly the same, served out by the AFP.
Here's a comparison of the two photos. The first is the AFP shot from the 9th of this June, and the second is Iranian news service MEHR's photo (third down from the top) from November 2006:
This is recycled enough to meet Al Gore's standards.
Notice the shape of the dust clouds, the fact that the truck is the same, and how the exhaust from the missiles lines up almost perfectly. Also notice that the AFP caption reads:
In a handout picture released on the news website of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, an Iranian Shahab-3 missile, the longest ranged ballistic missle in Iran's arsenal with a range of 2000 kilometres, rises into the air after being test-fired at an undisclosed location in the Iranian desert on July 9, 2008. Iran today test-fired a missile it said is capable of reaching Israel, angering the United States amid growing fears that the standoff over the contested Iranian nuclear drive could lead to war. (AFP PHOTO/HO/SEPAH NEWS) [Photo via Newscom]
... which means that Sepah News, which was discredited yesterday, is still viewed as a "reliable" news source by the intelligentsia over in gay Paris.
Update: The New York Times has taken notice... sort of:
Snapped Shot: "[C]hosen by New York Times editors?" Boo-yah!
If you're coming here from the Times, and aren't familiar with this site, I'd recommend brushing up on this, this, and this. And do be sure to sound off if you have any thoughts. I always love hearing from new readers!
