Manipulation of Media Coverage During War on Iraq
The role of the media is critical in nearly every walk of life now because of its expanse especially in the last decade. The media has grown into such a powerful tool of communication and influence that it has now become an integral part of the wars that are being fought e.g. The War on Terror or the U.S. intervention in Iraq. The reason behind the media being such an integral part of the international wars is because the world is now a global village where to preserve the right image and intentions in fighting or winning a war it is important to win the opinions and the support of the global community. Even though most media outlets aim to present both sides of the story, many journalists agree that the pattern has always been the formation of an opinion that is inclined towards one side more so then the other.
The importance of media in winning the wars is perhaps best understood by the United States. The post-Cold War era, where they had to conduct war tactics in Somalia, Kosovo, Haiti and Afghanistan, were all conflicts that weren't just defended out on the battlefield but had to also be defended consistently up at the political front. The media was hence given enough leverage and power to become a part of the medium that allowed the political parties to stand up and defend their actions for the global community.
It cannot be denied that the media poses an unbiased and balanced approach towards reporting the incidence of wars and conflict nevertheless their reporting has a definite influence on the overall public opinion that is formed within the global community. Furthermore, there are many programs on the mediums of television and radio that are framed around the promotion of certain activities over others in the long run. For example there have been many programs based on the necessity, justification and extent of torture tactics that can or can't be used within the dynamics of war. Another example is the use of pictures depicting the joy that the people of Baghdad felt on April 9, 2003 when the war had in some ways ended. It could have also been easy to report that the actual battle wasn't really over and there was still a lot of bloodshed in the region but the picture that the media wanted to convey to the world was that the political loss of the battle was a relief to many natives who found celebration in the end of it.
Role of Media in the U.S. intervention in Iraq:
It is important to note here that the international media outlets cannot be efficiently or accurately broken down into different parts. Even though the media is a varied body of instruments, all of the instruments are interconnected and includes various frameworks that are political in nature, culturally diverse, commercial corporations that control the market as well as the advertisers that sponsor the media. This is perhaps one of the main reasons that the representation of facts as well as the influence of media on the public opinion regarding the war in Iraq has not been completely impartial.
It is also important to note here that the negative media coverage that the United States' government had to face during the Iraq intervention was anticipated by many because of the massive embedding of reporters and troops in the area. This allowed the media to bring a personal opinion into the situation because the embedded reporters were witnessing and going through what the natives of the region were going through. Hence, the fear and the insecurity of the situation was the denominator between the natives and the embedded reporters.
This level of freedom and access was granted to the media irrespective of the high probability of the negative projections that could be openly discussed. The overall disastrous situations and the distaste of many of the soldiers that were sent to Iraq was another negative report that the media highlighted on the global screens which aided in the formation of the negative public opinion. A great example of this was published in the Washington Post when Lieutenant General William Wallace was interviewed and asked to asses the situation he was in charge of. The Lieutenant said that in his opinion this entire exercise was being conducted against an enemy that was "different from the one we war-gamed against."
However, that wasn't what the Department of Defense's Office of General Counsel reported in May 1999 on the state and reasoning behind the similar attacks like the one made on Iraq:
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