War / Peace

Kurtz Blames Media for War's 'Great Expectations'

Submitted by John Stauber on

Howard Kurtz of the Washington Post asks, "Why did so many people think this would be a cakewalk? You'd have to say the media played a key role. The pre-war buildup was so overwhelming that it seemed like the war should be called off as a horrible mismatch. There were hundreds of stories about America's superior weaponry, the Bradleys and Apaches and Mother of All Bombs, the superbly trained forces. There were so many 'shock and awe' stories that Americans could be forgiven for thinking they were in for another video-game conflict.

No
Main Source: 
Washington Post, March 25, 2003
Topics: 
Iraq
Media

War, What Is It Good For? TV Ratings.

Submitted by John Stauber on

"The start of the war caused business at movie theaters to
drop by 25 percent on Wednesday as people stayed home to
watch the war, and snack-food sales and restaurant
deliveries thrived. The opening salvos of the war had taken
the place of prime-time entertainment, and television
stations did their best to serve up gaudily produced
coverage: the war in Iraq as the ultimate in reality
television, as the apotheosis of every favorite Hollywood
genre, from the combat thriller to the coming-of-age tale

No
Main Source: 
New York Times, March 25, 2003
Topics: 
Iraq
Media

'Embedded' Reporters Key To White House PR Plan

Submitted by Laura Miller on

"The eruption of war in Iraq last week set in motion a massive global PR network, cultivated by the Bush administration during the months-long buildup of forces. The network is intended not only to disseminate, but also to dominate news of the conflict around the world," PR Week writes.

No
Main Source: 
PR Week, March 24, 2003
Topics: 
Iraq
Journalism
Ethics

On NPR, Please Follow the Script

Submitted by Laura Miller on

"Last week I found out that National Public Radio wants the opinions of antiwar activists -- as long as we follow the right script," writes University of Texas journalism professor and co-founder of the Nowar Collective Robert Jensen. "After the first question, it was clear [NPR's Scott] Simon expected me to follow a script that would go something like this: Yes, I'm against this war, but I know that Saddam Hussein is such a monster that nothing short of war can deal with him.

No
Main Source: 
Commondreams.org, March 24, 2003
Topics: 
Iraq
Media

Who Lied to Whom About Iraq's Nuclear Program?

Submitted by John Stauber on

Investigative reporter Seymour Hersh asks, "Why did the Administration endorse a forgery about Iraq's nuclear program?" How did the misinformation end up in the President's State of the Union address, and who has been fooling whom to make sure the US attacked Iraq?

No
Main Source: 
The New Yorker, March 24, 2003
Topics: 
Iraq
Ethics
Propaganda
U.S. Government

Media Conglomerate Funds Pro-War Rallies

Submitted by John Stauber on

"These demonstrators wore shorts
and ball caps, pushed strollers and carried American flags,
but what most set them apart was the support they displayed ... for the
American-led war in Iraq. ... It was meant as ... an
angry protest against the antiwar sentiment that has been
more visible elsewhere, particularly in large cities. 'Don't let these peace protesters confuse you,' Glenn Beck,
a conservative radio host from Philadelphia, told the crowd

No
Main Source: 
New York Times, March 24, 2003
Topics: 
Iraq
Corporations
Media

Shocking and Awful

Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on

Pundits have depicted the U.S. military strategy of "shock and awe" in largely sanitary terms, suggesting that the high accuracy of laser-guided "smart bombs" will make it possible to decapitate the Iraqi command and control structure while leaving the country's infrastructure intact and limiting civilian casualties.

No
Main Source: 
http://www.disinfopedia.org/wiki.phtml?title=Shock_and_awe
Topics: 
Iraq
Rhetoric
U.S. Government

Anti-War Reporting Banned in UK Papers

Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on

"Sir Ray Tindle, the editor in chief of over 100 weekly newspapers across
Britain has informed all his editors that they can no longer report any
anti-war stories in their newspapers," reports Andy Rowell. Jeremy Dear of the UK's National Union of Journalists, condemned the move: " So much for the right to know, free speech and all those other rights which our forefathers fought to establish and which Sir Ray Tindle seeks to demolish at the stroke of a pen," Dear stated.

No
Main Source: 
http://www.prwatch.org/forum/showthread.php?threadid=2060
Topics: 
Iraq
Journalism
Democracy
Ethics
International

Media Allowed Bush to Mislead the Public Into War

Submitted by John Stauber on

"Critics of the war ... blame the
news media, asserting that they failed to challenge the
administration aggressively enough as it made a shaky case
for war. In an interview, Eric Alterman ... argued,
'Support for this war is in part a reflection that the
media has allowed the Bush administration to get away with
misleading the American people.' ... The strongest indictment of the press, many of these
critics argue, are recent polls that suggest many Americans

No
Main Source: 
New York Times, March 22, 2003
Topics: 
Iraq
Ethics
Media
U.S. Government

Secret Bids to Rebuild Iraq

Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on

"Weeks before the first bombs dropped in Iraq, the Bush administration began rebuilding plans," reports ABC News, which has obtained a copy of a 99-page contract worth $600 million from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) - the most money the agency has ever spent in a single country in a single year. Among the companies believed to be bidding are Bechtel, Fluor, Parsons, the Washington Group and Halliburton, Vice President Dick Cheney's old firm," ABC reports. "All are experienced. But in addition, all are generous political donors - principally to Republicans."

No
Main Source: 
ABC News, March 22, 2003
Topics: 
Iraq
Corporations
Secrecy
U.S. Government

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