{"id":29712,"date":"2018-01-14T12:44:29","date_gmt":"2018-01-14T17:44:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/olduvai.ca\/?p=29712"},"modified":"2018-01-14T12:44:29","modified_gmt":"2018-01-14T17:44:29","slug":"we-dont-consider-you-a-legitimate-journalist-how-i-got-blacklisted-by-the-pentagons-africa-command","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/olduvai.ca\/?p=29712","title":{"rendered":"“We Don’t Consider You a Legitimate Journalist”–How I Got Blacklisted by the Pentagon’s Africa Command"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo: Natalie Jidovanu<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\u201cWE DON\u2019T CONSIDER YOU A LEGITIMATE JOURNALIST\u201d \u2014 HOW I GOT BLACKLISTED BY THE PENTAGON\u2019S AFRICA COMMAND<\/a><\/h3>\n
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CONVERSATIONS WITH MILITARY<\/u> spokespeople can be curt, even confrontational, but they are not supposed to go this way.<\/p>\n

\u201cNick, we\u2019re not going to respond to any of your questions\u201d Lt. Cmdr. Anthony Falvo, the head of U.S. Africa Command\u2019s Public Affairs Branch, told me by phone last October. \u201cWe just don\u2019t feel that we need to.\u201d<\/p>\n

I asked if Falvo believed AFRICOM didn\u2019t need to address questions from the press in general, or just me in particular.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, just you,\u201d he replied. \u201cWe don\u2019t consider you a legitimate journalist, really.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then he hung up on me.<\/p>\n