Opinion

Dozing off to the sounds of war

Is war playing too big a role in our lives?

By Eric Russell

Posted on April 03, 2003, at 12:00 a.m.

How much is too much when it comes to media coverage of the war? NBC, CBS and ABC will tell you there is no such thing as too much. CNN and MSNBC have ’round-the-clock war coverage. You can wake up in the morning to the tranquillity of a reporter interviewing a soon-to-be widow and go to sleep with the peaceful sounds of bombs bursting over Baghdad.

Desensitization is bound to set in. It already has begun. Tom Brokaw stared into the camera one evening, warning impressionable children with the haunting words, “This is not a video game.” No kids, this is grueling violence, help yourself to seconds. We live in an age where instantaneous news is en vogue. Certain Web sites probably have ongoing death tolls. Both sides, please, we want to see who’s winning. Perhaps this is a game.

Now, the media are just doing their jobs, right? After all, this war isn’t being fought on American soil. U.S. citizens need to feed their insatiable appetites for news, and the media are our suppliers because we can’t get that information firsthand.

We tune in each night to Brokaw or Dan Rather or Peter Jennings because we want to be informed about what’s going on thousands of miles away. Some of us have loved ones over there. It’s a good thing to be informed, particularly about events that have global reaches, such as wars. How many people still lament Vietnam? Or World War II for that matter, though the number is dwindling rapidly?

But the line is becoming blurred. No longer does the media simply report the news. We are in a position to explore and debate every nuance of warfare and strategy and oil. But is that really what we want? Are we better off with the knowledge we are spoon-fed each time we watch the news?

There are probably thousands of journalists in the Persian Gulf right now, representing hundreds of television outlets, newspapers, magazines and radio stations. They risk their lives – though maybe not the same way soldiers do – to bring information into our homes. At what point does news become entertainment?

At the risk of belittling the war entirely, coverage is getting out of hand. The precedent was set recently with the events of Sept. 11 and it seems as though we’re trying to trump that with comprehensive war exposure.

What’s next? Giving a reporter a gun to protect herself on the front lines? Veteran newsman Peter Arnett was fired from NBC for granting an interview with an Iraqi TV station. Why? It’s not like he’s giving away anything to the enemy. Is NBC just covering its tracks, afraid to portray even the slightest sense that the station is against the war? Peter Arnett’s views do not represent the views of NBC. I’m sure we’ll see that disclaimer soon.

NBC’s Brian Williams stood across the river from Baghdad watching bombs rain down over Iraq’s capital, yet even a veteran like Williams couldn’t hide the fear in his eyes. Does he even want to be there?

It’s bad enough American soldiers have to be sent overseas on the whim of President Bush’s ruling hand, but journalists have a choice. Instead, they are perpetuating a war many don’t even support. Reporting every offensive move only glorifies the war for viewers here in the United States. The war certainly does not need any more glorification.

Eric Russell is a senior journalism major.

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 3rd, 2003, 12:00 am. You can follow any responses to this article through the RSS feed.