[BNW] Re: bnw-digest.19991227

[John Higginbotham <cloudshaper2k@yahoo.com>]

>>      Keep something in mind, folks. Truth's not
>>infallible. And her power likely only works on
>>people, which means she's vulnerable to print media.
>>(How ironic is THAT statement?) So, some of her
>>information may not be 'entirely accurate.'
>
>But she is also presumably a competent reporter
(i.e., >Profession: Reporter at decent skill levels
and >stuff).  One can (hopefully!) assume that she 
>talks to witnesses, investigates matters for herself,
>and does reporter-type verification.  Her statements
>in the section in question are presented as fact. 
Not >"alleged" fact or "best reports indicate that"
fact.
>
>Plus...why would she be inaccurate in this case?

     Perhaps she did. And, it's possible her
informants were misinformed, probably deliberately, in
order for DP to maintain a smokescreen. Any Gadgeteer
that ever worked on an Armorgeddon suit would probably
pick up on the flaws in that tale. It's quite possibly
a clue or a lead in to an adventure.
     Despite the best efforts of the best reporter,
everyone makes a mistake now and then. If her sources
don't know they're wrong, how can Truth know they're
wrong?

>>      The good thing is, Truth is a reliable source
>>of information. She at least makes a point of trying
>>to get the real story out. (Which is better than
what >>the general public gets from Kennedy's
government.)
>>
>
>Well, some spoiler material here, but...
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>No, she isn't entirely a reliable source of
>information.  That's stated in the Guide-only section
>of the basic rulebook.  

     Which is why I didn't have a spoiler warning in
my post. I simply wasn't mentioning that in order to
avoid having to put one.

>She's engaged in a 
>misinformation program to make the Defiance look
>weaker than it is, yet to make herself seem a
reliable >reporter to the authorities.  After all, if
she 
>isn't accurately reporting information on Delta
Prime, >why would they believe she is reporting
accurate >information on the "weak, disorganized"
Defiance?
>
>So when Matt says to "consider the source" here, I
>don't follow.  It's in Truth's best interest to
report >the actions of Delta Prime as accurately as
she can.  >If she's inaccurate, they'll know it and
tend to >dismiss her as a reliable source of reporting
on the >Defiance.
>
>Now, it _might_ be in her best interests to
exaggerate >Delta Prime's activities here.  But
maintaining >herself as a accurate reporter woudl seem
to far >outweigh lying about DP's strategies and
actions in >this case.

     It depends on the story DP fed the media. If a
source within DP 'leaked' multiple stories to various
reporters or sources they suspect might be linked to
Truth, it's in her best interest to stick with the
story they're feeding the majority of the press. So,
if she gets one story from an interview for her
newspaper, and another from an 'inside' source, it
makes more sense to report the mainstream story since
it makes her harder to track.
     It also conceals any security leaks the Defiance
has put into DP. Thus, it protects Defiance spies who
can continue to feed her information that will be
critical to bringing down Kennedy's regime. Maintaing
her image as an accurate reporter is useless to the
Defiance if doing so compromises the safety and
security of their people within DP and the government.
As long as DP doesn't know they've got internal leaks,
Truth can feed the accurate information directly to
the Defiants who can make the most use of it. It has
the added bonus of giving DP a false sense of
security. 

=====
John Higginbotham 
Phoenix, Arizona, USA
cloudshaper2k@yahoo.com 
jahiggin@starlink.com
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