Back to the phony video about Sarah Palin that was posted to youtube by a PR professional - Ethan Winner has confessed but states he acted on his own:
September 22, 20081:30 pm PDT
Statement of Ethan Winner
The following is in response to questions I have received regarding the post on the Jawa Report website.
I produced and posted on the Internet the video entitled "Sarah Palin: A Heartbeat Away."
The idea for the video was mine. No one paid me to produce it. The only out-of-pocket cost will be the fee for the voice-over narrator, which I will pay personally when I receive an invoice. Contrary to the allegation in the Jawa Report, the voice-over artist has never done any work for the Obama campaign. I retained her through a talent agency based solely on the quality of her voice.
Neither the Obama campaign nor any independent political action committee has had a connection with the making and/or posting of this video. Just like the thousands of Americans who have posted videos on the Internet regarding the current Presidential campaign, I produced this video as an expression of my right to free speech, which is guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.
I believe the American people have a right and a need to know information about candidates for political office and their views. I made this video because I think it is important for the public to be aware of the association between Sarah and Todd Palin and the Alaskan Independence Party. The New York Times has reported that the Alaskan Independence Party website describes the party as seeking, in the words of the party, "a range of solutions to the conflicts between federal and local authority," including "advocacy for state's rights, through a return to territorial status, all the way to complete independence and nationhood status for Alaska."Did he say his video is inaccurate but true? Maybe it was more like, "the buck stops here, although I did nothing wrong."While a number of media outlets have said that reports that Sarah Palin was a member of the Alaskan Independence Party may have been erroneous, her attendance at the party's 1994 convention, her video speech to the 2008 convention and her husband's membership in the Alaskan Independence Party have not been called into question.
Some people have asked why I have pulled the video from the Internet. The reason is simple. Following the posting of personal information about me by the Jawa Report, my family began to receive threatening and abusive phone calls and emails.
No, there is not a path implicating Barack Obama's campaign and there is no hint of remorse. Regarding the latter, I suppose truth is relative to some and can be manipulated to serve the ultimate goal which in this case was apparently to discredit Palin. The actual meaning of Alaskan governor's statements don't really matter - it is the purpose they serve which justifies the fictional video
The factual basis for the video was incorrect (Palin was never a member of the Alaskan Independence Pary) and the video employed a number of fallacies, including circumstantial ad hominem, prejudicial use of language, guilt by association and others.
So, the substance of the video was false, Sarah Palin's statements were taken out of context and the reasoning was invalid and yet ...
"...I produced this video as an expression of my right to free speech, which is guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution."
Those who already hate Palin will applaud, everyone else ought to be appalled.
Why not just publicize what Palin actually stands for rather than employ internet fiction? Perhaps it is because Palin's true character and actual position on the issues are consistent with those of a great leader.
