history of mass media week 15: persian gulf wars

History of Mass MediaWeek 15: Persian Gulf Wars

Please sign card to thank Prof. Joseph Campbell for speaking to our class about Murrow & McCarthy

Today: Gulf Wars 1991-1992 and 2003-2011◦Pick up papers, after class

Wednesday: Advertising’s Golden Age with Jim Clark

Friday: Exam 2◦Five short-answer questions◦One essay question (in class)◦Take-home essay due May 13

Monday, May 2: NewsWednesday, May 4: sports, photography, plus leftover news

Friday, May 6: advertising, production, business office

FORMAT: 3-4 minutes, one PPt slide

Reporter, news editor, managing editor, editorial-page editor

Biggest story: Mount St. Helens eruption & ash fallout (May 1980)

Biggest success: hiring, mentoring successful reporters, editors

1991: Operation Desert Shield1992: Operation Desert Storm (Persian Gulf War I)

2003-2004: Operation Iraqi Freedom

2005-present: nation building, prevent civil war

Response to Iraqi invasion of Kuwait (long-standing border dispute)

U.S. Ambassador told Saddam, July 1991: “We don’t have a position...”

JAMM 100

Hill & Knowlton◦Washington, D.C.

1991: Citizens for a Free Kuwait◦Front for Kuwaiti

royal family Goal: build support

for U.S. military action against Iraq

JAMM 100

Hill & Knowlton’s tactics:◦Testimony to Congress◦‘Incubator babies’ scam

to show Iraq’s brutality◦Witness was actually

daughter of Kuwait’s ambassador to U.S.

U.S., allied forces expelled Iraqi forces from Kuwait, but left Saddam in power

Pool coverage by media◦Relied on Central Command HQ

◦Independent journalists discouraged

“The build-up to war had taken so long that the media was determined that this would be the most thoroughly reported war of modern times. It would be the biggest news-gathering operation in the history of television.”

--Philip Knightley

Pentagon’s media policy changed

Embedded journalists (“embeds”), assigned to units

PRO: Access to combat, less risk

CON: Subject to censorship

“When you depend on a unit, your natural tendency is to protect them… and it affected coverage.”

--Chris Hedges, NY Times

Donald Rumsfeld◦ Secretary of Defense

Behind-the-scenes PR campaign

“Rumsfeld has turned the press conference into an art form….”

The 1st American hero?

Conventional wisdomContrarian view (Campbell)

March 23, 2003, Nasiriyah (S. Iraq)

Iraqis ambushed U.S. troops

Lynch captured, hurt, hospitalized

April 1: U.S. special ops rescue Lynch

A stage-managed stunt (“War Spin”)?

OR simply reporting errors by the Post?

Americans eager for a story that showed heroism under fire

“Inter-media agenda setting”

VIDEO: War Spin

Be sure to sign card for Campbell

Check date for presentation next week