On November 28, The Gazette of Colorado Springs (subscription required) published articles from McClatchy Newspapers and The Los Angeles Times about the Iraq war, but edited out descriptions of the conflict as a “civil war.” As The Boston Globe noted on November 28, NBC News, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, McClatchy Newspapers, and The Christian Science Monitor all recently began referring to the conflict in Iraq as a civil war -- a change in terminology with which the Bush administration disagrees. The Globe also noted that "[t]he new policy [of characterizing the violence in Iraq as civil warfare], which NBC News said would cover all its news shows, could become a benchmark in public opinion about the war, according to media specialists."

According to a November 27 Associated Press article, the term “civil war” is “a phrase that President Bush and many ... news organizations have avoided” in describing the Iraq conflict. The AP article reported comments made on November 27 by White House press secretary Tony Snow, who said of Iraq, “You have not yet had a situation also where you have two clearly defined and opposing groups vying not only for power, but for territory. ... What you do have is sectarian violence that seems to be less aimed at gaining full control over an area than expressing differences, and also trying to destabilize a democracy -- which is different than a civil war, where two sides are clashing for territory and supremacy.”

However, as co-host Matt Lauer announced on the November 27 broadcast of NBC's Today, “NBC News has decided the change in terminology is warranted -- that the situation in Iraq, with armed militarized factions fighting for their own political agendas, can now be characterized as civil war.”

The original version of the November 28 McClatchy article reported, “On Monday, McClatchy Newspapers ... having reported from Baghdad that Shiites and Sunnis are battling for control of Baghdad's neighborhoods in an organized way, decided to call the Iraq conflict a civil war.” The Gazette removed that paragraph from its version of the McClatchy article, along with all other references to “civil war” in Iraq.

For instance, the McClatchy article reported, “The unfolding civil war between Sunni Muslims, backed by insurgent groups, and Shiite Muslims, led by militias and their allies in the security forces, has rendered life virtually untenable for ordinary Iraqis.” The Gazette's version of the same article, however, read: “Fighting between Sunni Muslims, backed by insurgent groups, and Shiite Muslims, led by militias and their allies in Iraq's security forces, has rendered life virtually untenable for ordinary Iraqis.”

The Gazette also published an edited version of a November 28 Los Angeles Times article, deleting a paragraph that referred to the conflict in Iraq as a “civil war.” The original Times article reported, “Meanwhile, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani flew to Iran to seek help in stopping the sectarian bloodshed after bombs and mortars killed at least 215 people in a Shiite Muslim neighborhood of Baghdad last week in the worst sectarian attack of the civil war.” The Gazette version of the article did not include that sentence and omitted three more paragraphs that reported incidents of Iraq's civil warfare.

Similarly, on November 27, The Gazette edited a Times article to remove its “civil war” reference. The original Times article included a sentence that read: “The civil war in Iraq will be at the top of the agenda when U.S. and regional leaders meet this week in a round of high-level diplomacy.” The Gazette's version of the same sentence read: “The war in Iraq will be at the top of the agenda when U.S. and regional leaders meet this week in a flurry of high level diplomacy.”

Below is a comparison of the November 28 McClatchy and Times articles and The Gazette's edited versions that highlight changes and omissions:

From McClatchy Newspapers' November 28 article, “Hundreds of families flee Baghdad as curfew lifts”

From The Gazette's version, titled “Iraqis flee as curfew dropped”

Except for the road to the airport, where traffic stretched for miles, few cars ventured onto Baghdad's perilous streets.

The unfolding civil war between Sunni Muslims, backed by insurgent groups, and Shiite Muslims, led by militias and their allies in the security forces, has rendered life virtually untenable for ordinary Iraqis.

[...]

Except for the road to Baghdad International Airport, where traffic stretched for miles, few cars ventured into the capital's perilous streets.

Fighting between Sunni Muslims, backed by insurgent groups, and Shiite Muslims, led by militias and their allies in Iraq's security forces, has rendered life virtually untenable for ordinary Iraqis.

[...]

On Monday, McClatchy Newspapers, including The [Sacramento] Bee, having reported from Baghdad that Shiites and Sunnis are battling for control of Baghdad's neighborhoods in an organized way, decided to call the Iraq conflict a civil war.

NBC News also began referring to it as a civil war.

Matt Lauer said on the “Today” show that “after careful consideration, NBC News has decided that a change in terminology is warranted, that the situation in Iraq with armed, militarized factions fighting for their own political agendas can now be characterized as civil war.”

Publicly, the Bush administration disputes that Iraq is in a civil war.

White House spokesman Tony Snow said it was not a civil war because “you have not yet had a situation ... where you have two clearly defined and opposing groups vying not only for power but for territory.”

[omitted]

From the November 28 Los Angeles Times article, “U.S. jet goes down in Iraq”

From The Gazette's version, titled “U.S. jet, copter crash in Iraq”

Meanwhile, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani flew to Iran to seek help in stopping the sectarian bloodshed after bombs and mortars killed at least 215 people in a Shiite Muslim neighborhood of Baghdad last week in the worst sectarian attack of the civil war.

The bombings Thursday in Sadr City, a stronghold of radical Shiite cleric Muqtada Sadr's Al Mahdi militia, triggered waves of reprisal killings despite a three-day curfew.

The bodies of 44 Iraqis who had been shot execution-style, the apparent victims of death squads, were recovered Monday by police in Baghdad and south of the capital.

At least 20 others died in gun and mortar fire around the country, among them six Shiite workers seized by Sunni gunmen in the Shorja market in downtown Baghdad and later executed, police said.

[omitted]