1115.org

Here’s a lesson in Journalistic Logic from Fox News. This is Steve Harrigan explaining why it’s reasonable to assume (and therefore report; that’s the Fox News creed: “I assume, therefore I report!”) that John MCain had a hand in securing the release of 15 hostages yesterday — including former Colombian presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt and three U.S. military contractors — from FARC rebels:

Well, you’d have to think as a former prisoner of war himself, Sen. McCain would have an intense interest in this case. It’s been played pretty low profile. A lot of people aren’t even aware of the fate of these three Americans. They were really working for a Defense Department civilian contractor. So there really might be a connection between the high-level visit of the former prisoner of war, John McCain himself, and the release now of three American prisoners here in southern Colombia.

You’re following the logic, right?

One, you’d have to think that McCain would have an intense interest in this case. Two, it’s been played pretty low profile, and a lot of people aren’t even aware of the fate of these three Americans. Three, therefore, there really might be a connection between McCain’s high-level visit and the release now of three American prisoners. (Forget the other 12 hostages, non-Americans don’t count, not even if one of them was a serious candidate for President of Columbia.)

Let’s also go ahead and note one other assumption that Harrigan finds reasonable: that such involvement is precisely the kind of news that the McCain campaign would resolutely maintain radio silence about.