War stories
My newspaper column
The war in Iraq is always on our minds and close to our hearts.
Many of us know people there, but even if we didn't, we're reminded of the war throughout the day when we review stories sent to us by our wire services.
We know that the war and our armed forces are on your minds and close to your hearts, too, because you tell us so.
Many of your letters and calls express concerns that are transparently political. For instance, the killing of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi deserved more prominence in the newspaper because it was perceived as a victory for the Bush administration's efforts. To be fair, I've also heard from those who think the continued investigations into what happened in Mahmoudiya and Haditha should be on the front page because they are illustrative of the folly of the war.
There's not even agreement on the way American deaths should be reported. Both supporters and opponents of the nation's efforts in Iraq have argued to me that the deaths of American soldiers and Marines should be published on the front page. One side suggested that it honors the ultimate sacrifice an American can make for his country. The other takes the position that American readers should be continually reminded of the costs of war.
Last week, I heard from a reader who asked me not to publish his name. He simply wanted to have a conversation about our coverage. It was spurred, he said, by his reflections on the Fourth of July.
Put aside present-day politics, he said. "Just think about the soldiers," he said.
He believed we put negative war news on the front page while publishing articles about Iraqi brutality on inside pages. Stories about torture at Abu Ghraib, suicide at Guantanamo Bay and murder in Haditha causes Americans at home to lose respect for the troops, he said.
"This is the kind of thing that undermines the soldiers," he said. "And you remember what happened in Vietnam."
Yes, I do. No one wants to repeat the scenes of returning troops being spat upon or relive a Baghdad version of the fall of Saigon. There were many things that fed the erosion of confidence in Vietnam, including government misinformation, the draft and the seeming endlessness of the conflict. I hope that, as a society, we have learned from our mistakes.
Accusations that Americans have acted illegally always get the headlines, often on the front page. One of the characteristics that differentiate us and our enemies are our standards of behavior. (The rule of law, the public good and civic morality are others.) So when American troops are accused of criminal activities, it is bigger news than when the terrorists or insurgents are.
"Would you prefer not to know it?" I asked him.
"I'd prefer that it not turn the people against the troops," he responded.
Truth be told, we don't publish that many stories about the Iraq war on the front page these days. Because of the time difference, most of the big news out of the Middle East occurs overnight on the East Coast, the worst time for us. The news doesn't make the morning paper, but does makes the morning, noon and 6 p.m. news programs.
By the time we can get the story into the paper, most of our readers have heard about it from television or the Internet. Unless we can add some vital information to the story, it has often lost its front page news value. That is we don't want a front page with news and information that people already know. It's a fast track to irrelevance.
The exception, of course, is when there is a local connection. If Triad soldier loses his or her life, that's a front page story. So, too, were the articles produced by staff writer Allison Perkins last year when she traveled to the Middle East and told the stories of local soldiers and Marines.
In the end, my correspondent and I met somewhere in the middle. We agreed that the men and women in the armed services deserve all the credit we can give them. We agreed that the world would be a better place with less political posturing. And we agreed that the newspaper would continue to balance the positive news from Iraq with the negative.
Comments (4)
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"And we agreed that the newspaper would continue to balance the positive news from Iraq with the negative."
Unfortunately, due to the nature of your business, you'll pretty much cover what the liberal major news media wire services send out, which means more will be negative than positive. You don't have much else to choose from, do you?
Local angles are important and probably mean much more to your readers than the Big Picture available 24/7 from the cable TV news services.
Hundreds of patrols and civil action projects are conducted every day in Iraq. Dozens of aid organizations do their work every day. Terrorists are apprehended every day. Iraqi military and police units are trained up and made operational every week. Schools built, homes repaired, water and sewer projects completed by Army Engineers. U.S. Embassy workers solve women's issues and repatriate those who lost homes and land during Saddam's reign. And so on and so on...
But the headlines read, "3 Americans Killed In Iraq Today."
It's not the negativeness of the lead stories that saddens me, it's the marginalization of "the rest of the story."
Posted on July 9, 2006 10:42 AM
I would have thought that a First Amendment privilege was worth something more than balancing the positive with the negative. Journalism should be about more than just giving "both sides" equal time. If that's all you're good for, spare the trees.
Posted on July 9, 2006 9:56 PM
"... you'll pretty much cover ... more ... negative than positive."
That's a tough one. Sure some terrorists are apprehended - but so are innivent peoples 'cause we can't tell them apart. Police units are trained, but some Police units are killing innocent people too. Schools are built, but this was clearly not going as planned, and only after three years it seems to be coming together.
Here's what's going on in Iraq, local newspaper style. This may not be the best analogy, but hey, this is short notice (smile).
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There were and are Bad Guys. The Cops chase the bad guys (Afganistan), but somewhere on the route they take a detour and unlock the Malt Shop (Iraq). At first the pedestrians on the street don't know what to do, but they assume the door was unlocked for them, and when the Cops stand by and let them, they are happy (the looting).
When they get home, however, they find the electricity has been cut, but not to worry, these are Super Cops with the seemingly endless power of Shock and Awe. The electricity stays off, however, and when the sewer backs up, they start to question this power.
But many still like the new Cops, cause there is the promise of a new more fair town council and lots of candy is handed out to the kids. But Dad's out of work, and times are getting rougher; the garbage starting to really stink.
Now the still uncaptured bad guys also wonder about this faux power .. and they find with well placed violence, they can chase away the few friends the Cops brought with them (the UN and Red Cross left in short order). The cops are bent on the quick solution: install Mayor Crony. But the Townspeople reject Chalabi - "who is he anyway", they say, "and why can't I find a job"?
There just aren't enough imported cops to go around to keep the bad guys at bay. The Cops are going after the bad guys, but they can't tell my Honor Student child from the Gangstas down the street, and today the wrong person was hauled away. Not to worry - the Cops promise Truth and Justice, but my innocent Son has not returned for months and months - until photos show that some of the Cops are as jerky as the former Mayor.
Well we did get to vote last year, and again this month, but there're really been no changes. Dad's still out of work, and today the Gangstas blew up my church and everyone knows it's the THEM causing the trouble, 'cept Them who are thinking it's really Me.
And the Cops? Hidden in a fortress. They claim they will help if we come see them, but I can't go in without an escort, and I've been wating all day for my contact to come get me.
Occassionally I do see the Cops, but they're driving really fast and seem suspicious of everyone ever since those Gangstas down the street started acting up. Well ower is on like it was in the old days, but it's no better, and Daddy's still out of work. My brother did get a job working with the Cops, but he's scared to tell anyone 'cause a Gangsta might overhear.
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So what's a newspaper to print? Candy handouts? The Cop's story? Dad's story about being out of work?
Ultimately, how does a newspaper - how do a people - support the good things that are happening, without giving undue credit to those that caused this not-so good thing in the first place.
Praise the soldier, but curse the chicken hawk fools (ok, a little partisanship, I guess)
Posted on July 12, 2006 6:40 PM
Mr. Rockefeller, I'm glad you don't represent the News & Record.
Posted on July 13, 2006 1:41 PM