During historical conflicts between the US and nations that didn't have freedom of the press, there are countless stories of the other side's government believing that because their own media was a total sham, regardless of our statements to the contrary, our own media must therefore be full of lies.<p>The common response to this sort of story is to laugh and say how little they understood the power of a truly free press.  And this is true for its part, but it is also true that there <i>is</i> goverment and now corporate propaganda mixed into the "reputable" news.  Not of the same scale or variety, but it is there nonetheless.