Press and the War

 

    The Press, the government, and the military are far more closely tied than we may believe. The press has the responsibility to report on the wars and provide that information to the people and sometimes help gain support for the war. The government and the military are responsible for the wars and for making sure the troops and country are safe. The relationships between the three change through time and change with wars. 

WWII 

    During this time the relations between the press and the government were far different than what we see today. Journalists and reporters were seen as helping the war effort and a part of the war effort which made the relations between the press and the government very close. Journalists at this time almost tiptoed around the government and military to make sure what they were releasing was helping the war effort and not putting the United States in a bad light. The government and the military trusted the media and almost expected them to sort out anything that made the United States look bad. There was far more lying in the press at this time but it was accepted and seen as beneficial because it was a time of crisis. 

Vietnam War 

    The Vietnam war is what actually ruined the strong trust and relationship between the press and the government. At this time, the press was against the war and the government was actively trying to silence the press so they could gain more support for the war. However, the press still reported the casualties and the length of the war and this made the public grow a stronger dislike for the war in Vietnam. The reporters were also facing issues with even getting the news over to the United States. Reporters would have to record the content and ship the recording over and it would take days to get back to the United States. This made reporters have to make sure that the content they were getting would be able to be used days later. On top of the issues they were facing with time, the reporters were being lied to by the military. One reporter saw United States helicopters in Vietnam when the United States claimed there were none over there yet. When the reporter asked the military why the helicopters are there they claimed to have never seen them. Since the military and the press were telling different stories this caused issues with the public and the public had a hard time choosing who to trust. The government claimed that it was not censorship since there were no restrictions on the press.

Iraqi War/Persian Gulf War 

    The Iraqi government was lying to their own press similarly to what the United States did during the Vietnam war and this made the United States government upset because the United States was being shined in a bad light and it was false information. The reporters reacted by going to Iraq to report the war and report all of it so the people can choose what they want to believe. The constant reporting led to the CNN effect. 

CNN Effect 

    The CNN effect was the constant filming of the war in the middle east. The constant filming made the world open to instant coverage and allowed the world to see everything going on in the war. This affected public opinion around the world. The CNN effect also changed how diplomats and politicians reacted to issues in the world. The CNN effect left politicians and leaders to have accountability for events going on in the world. For example, George W. Bush saw starving kids in Somalia all over the news and he reacted by sending troops and food for help. The CNN effect showed what was really going on in the world and also was used as a tool by politicians and countries to make them look better.  

The Media and the War on Terrorism, edited by Stephen Hess, and Marvin Kalb, Brookings Institution Press, 2003. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/highpoint-ebooks/detail.action?docID=268832.