This doesn't just happen in Communist countries. The western gov't(some) are able to sugar coat their ugly truth a lot more affectively than the Communist gov't, in order to justify their actions. In this day and age when we are surrounded by modern comforts and conveniences, sometimes it is even easier for gov't to blind us in order for them to carry out their unjust actions and bad policies.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/20/washington/20generals.html?ref=world
Behind Analysts, the Pentagon's Hidden Hand
By DAVID BARSTOW
Published: April 20, 2008
http://www.voanews.com/english/2008-04-20-voa15.cfm
NYT Report: Pentagon Used TV Military Analysts to Get Favorable Coverage of Iraq War
By VOA News
20 April 2008
The New York Times newspaper reports the Pentagon used military analysts working for U.S. television networks to generate favorable coverage of the war in Iraq and other issues.
The newspaper Sunday said the analysts were invited to private briefings with senior military leaders, taken on tours of Iraq and given access to classified intelligence.
The Times also said viewers were not made aware that most of the analysts have ties to military contractors. Many of the analysts are retired high-ranking military officials.
The report says the companies included large defense businesses and smaller companies that had a vested interest in the war policies the analysts discussed.
The Times quotes a Pentagon spokesman, Bryan Whitman, as saying the analysts had been given only factual information about the war.
The newspaper says it based its report on 8,000 email messages, transcripts and records it secured after winning a lawsuit against the Pentagon.