Today, several journalists covering the Iraq War (including Seymour Hersh, the AP's Tony Castaneda, and Kevin Begos of the Winston-Salem Journal) told those attending an AP Managing Editors conference that the lack of security in Iraq has made it impossible for journalists to get -- and give us -- an accurate report of what is really happening anywhere in that country, especially among the Iraqis, outside the heavily fortified "Green Zone" of Baghdad.
If that's true, is there a way those journalists and the rest of us can use the Internet to find credible sources and accurate information that will give us what we need to assess this war and decide if we should continue to support it?
This blog is a forum for faculty, students and alumni of the Mass Communications Department and Center for New Media at Colorado State University - Pueblo. The views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the views of the MCCNM department or the University.
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4 comments:
Have we ever gotten an accurate report of war from journalists? From the gatekeeping the military put on WWII journalists (Walter Cronkite telling of how he always had his writing vetted by the military) to the Pentagon controlling coverage in Vietnam, to even the attempted inbedded reporting of the Iraqi war...
I'm not sure what "accurate" means for a journalist covering war since it's a very complex operation capable of numerous perspectives, but it may not be possible to get a handle on the Iraqi war without seriously risking one's life. I'm not sure the Internet makes any difference with that.
The only way it could occur would be that Iraqi citizens communicate online with the rest of the world about what's going on over there. Is that possible?
What sort of incentives are there for Iraqi citizens to do this?
One of the greatest strengths (and weaknesses) of the internet as a mass medium is its ability to put worldwide publishing in the hands of everyone with a modem and an opinion. Iraqi citizens need no incentive or motivation to publish a blog, any more than the millions of cyber-geeks anywhere else in the world. They're already doing it.
One blog, Iraq Blog Count (http://iraqblogcount.blogspot.com/), is dedicated to wacthing and cataloging blogs from Iraqis. it contains a list of dozens of blogs produced daily by Iraqis.
I know of a book coming out by Robert Pelton (who wrote world's most dangerous places) who writes about his experiences as a war reporter.Also by reading books about the journalists who have visited Iraq during the war (like War Reporting for Cowards), and personal soldiers accounts may fill in some missing pieces about what's going on.
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