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In its issue published on January 29, the newspaper “The Washington Times” has dedicated an entire section to Azerbaijan and to its importance to the US, however, the inscription on the cover of the application of the special report prepared by appropriate department of the newspaper explains that tone - it's just a marketing ploy. Of course, in the news section or comments to the same edition would not have been an ad unit about Azerbaijan, writes blogger Erik Wemple in an article published on the website of “The Washington Post”.
However, in the Column of the Opinions Wemple has also found an article entitled "Why Azerbaijan is important for America and the free world." In the notes below the article it is noted that the author Dan Burton is identified as “a former Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Indiana.

“Perhaps because of space constraints, the italicized tagline omits another credential of Burton’s: His status as the chairman of the Azerbaijan America Alliance,” Wemple writes.

Meanwhile, the author cites an article from Reuters where there’s a real news concerning this wonderful country: “Azerbaijan on Tuesday extended the pre-trial detention of a journalist critical of President Ilham Aliyev, prompting concern from Europe’s democracy watchdog OSCE about ‘rapidly deteriorating’ media freedoms in the ex-Soviet state,” reports Reuters.

Wemple notes that Rosemary Armao, an associate professor of Journalism/Communication at the State University of New York at Albany and a friend of Ismayilova’s, has written a letter to the Washington Times over the Burton column. American aid ought to be on the side of democracy, freedom, and the Azeri people. It must be linked to reforms, greater transparency and, immediately, to the release of Khadija Ismayilova, “Shame on you Rep. Burton for penning a false and deceitful column,” she says noting that there are virtually no independent journalists left in Azerbaijan.

As Wemple informs John Solomon, editor and vice president for content and business development for the Washington Times, says the omission of Burton’s role in the Azerbaijan America Alliance was a mistake. “I wish we’d caught it — my fault,” says Solomon. The Washington Times has updated the story to include mention of Burton’s connection to the alliance.