How Embedded Journalists Globalized the War in Iraq
April 2nd, 2015
In 2003, the United States declared war on Iraq. In that same year, the Pentagon created an embedded journalists program that attached 600 journalists from various news agencies around the world to American military units as they invaded the Middle Eastern country. These journalists lived, patrolled, and went under fire with the units and then reported their stories on broadcast news television across the globe. These embedded soldier’s newscasts globalized life on the warfront.
Supporters of the government-sponsored program argued that it allowed maximum, in depth coverage of US forces not only in combat, but in their daily lives as soldiers in enemy territory, a perspective previously missed in past wars. In the video below, embedded journalist David Bloom reports to MSNBC a detailed account of an incident in which missiles were fired by Iraqi troops at his unit just across the border in Kuwait. He is able to recount exactly what occurred and how the US troops reacted because he had been there himself. It was live television reports like this that brought the frontlines of war into the homes of people across the globe.
Although embedded journalism seemed like a groundbreaking new way to globalize in depth war coverage, the program had numerous critics. Media watchdogs warned of the government using embedded journalism as a means of gatekeeping and agenda setting. Before officially becoming a part of the embedded journalist program, reporters were required to sign contracts in which they agreed to allow their reports to be reviewed by military officials before being released. Critics argued that this was the government’s way of controlling the world’s knowledge and opinion about the war to build public support.
So, is the possibility of the reports from embedded journalists being biased towards the government’s agenda worth the direct access into action on the warfront? If people are aware how they are trying to be influenced and avoid doing so, the unique perspective of an embedded journalist can open a window about war to the globe.
Among the Troops: Seeing the Iraq War Through Three Journalistic Vantage Points
Introduction: Thinking through Embeddedness: Globalization, Culture, and the Popular
The “Grunt Truth” of Embedded Journalism: The New Media/Military Relationship
Media Coverage of Military: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Al Jazeera: A Middle Eastern Perspective in International News Broadcasting
March 26th, 2014
Almost anyone alive on September 11th, 2001 remembers the terrible events that occurred. Videos and images of the terrorist attack were broadcasted on television news stations across the world. The attack boosted the Qatar based news station, Al Jazeera, into the world spotlight as a major competitor to channels like CNN. The station added a unique perspective to the coverage, the perspective of the Arab world. This was vital at the time because it globalized their viewpoint, something that was being overlooked by Western news outlets.
Ever since then, Al Jazeera has only grown into a bigger worldwide source for news, bringing conflict in the Middle East to a global audience. It has converged to include websites in numbers different languages and even has an app for smartphones.
As Al Jazeera continues to grow, it will be important to watch how their opinion will become increasingly impactful in the international news world. With 50 million viewers, it is already on its way to being one of the worlds biggest news stations.
The Al Jazeera Effect: How the New Global Media Are Reshaping World
The Globalization of International News: Groundbreaking or Problematic?
March 19th, 2015
How dedicated are you to staying up to date with the most recent international news stories? Regardless of whether you are an avid newspaper reader or CNN addict, in todays technologically driven and mass media controlled society, it is harder to not be informed about the events occurring around the globe.
Why is this so? The development of mass media has changed the world by giving people the ability to connect regardless of geographical location. This concept, known as globalization, “refers to the rapidly developing process of complex interconnections between societies, cultures, institutions and individuals world-wide”.
It was almost impossible to be a functioning member of society in 2014 without hearing about big stories like Je Suis Charlie, Ebola, or the Sony Hack. Every newspaper, news station, radio station, and more were reporting on these huge international news stories.
International news, especially news agencies, are agents of globalization. For example, the Associated Press, United Press International, Reuters, and Agence France, known as the ‘big four’, provide ninety percent of foreign news printed by the world’s newspapers. These gatekeepers decide what stories are the most important for the world to know.
There are many positives to this globalization of international news, but what is important to keep in mind is what are the stories are we not being told? News agencies are agenda setters. Agenda setting is, “the process through which issues bubble up into public attention through mass media selection of what to cover”(Vivian 371). So although the globalization of international news has allowed stories and opinions to be shared and spread across the world, it is important to not become a passive consumer of news. Find out what news agencies aren’t telling you. Just because it isn’t on the front page of the New York Times does not mean it is not important to be informed about.
Vivian, John. “Governance and Mass Media.” The Media of Mass Communication. Boston, MA: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon, 2009. 368-90. Print.
Globalization & Media 
Kamber Parker: March 23, 2015
This post rings true to our every day lives, because we really always know what is going on in the world, thanks to global media. Gaining access to what is happening all around the world is globalization at its finest, and you describe it perfectly when you say “mass media gives people the ability to connect regardless of geographical location”. It’s hard to imagine a world where we do not know everything going on around the world, especially when I think about all the news regarding ISIS and ebola this past year. But you also raise another good point, that is, what about all of the news we aren’t getting? How do people in the news industry decide what news we do or do not receive? I like how you refer back to Vivian’s readings and explain that agenda setting takes place and selects which stories we see first thing each day, because it is so relevant to our society and culture today.
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Sergio Lopez: March 24, 2015
I think you did a great job with using globalization and the news coverage. You are right when you mention there are news that cannot be unseen. Even if you are not a technological person who is in social media all the time being updated, there are still magazines and newspapers that keep people updated on the news. The writing style you did on this blog was also very good. You were able to write as if you were having a direct conversation with the reader and that is powerful. The questions made helped a lot on your style of writing. I also think you did a great job in including the sources throughout the blog and the terms we have discussed in class such as passive consumer. Overall the only things I would suggest to improve in your blog would be the subheadings. Try to separate some information with subheadings and do not forget about your sources.
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Tucker Genal: March 30, 2015
This post provides a very good perspective of a growing global news station. You did a good job of showing that their posts provide a very different story of global events, such as the 9/11 attack and the conflict in the middle east, then the rest of their counterparts. It just goes to show how different broadcasting companies have a wide variety of impact in many different cultures around the world. I had never heard of Al Jazeera before, but its very interesting to see and think about how many different news companies are actually out there. This was a very straight forward post that gets the point across of how global broadcasting can be, keep up the good work!
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