Reporters on the Battlefield. The Embedded Press System in Historical Context

Abstract

While the history of relations between the press and the military predates modern journalism, much of what had gone before was neutralized by the horrible press-military breakdown that occurred during U.S. involvement in Vietnam. By the end of the Vietnam War, press-military trust was at an all time low, and antagonism on both sides at an all time high. Many in the press, feeling repeatedly misled, reported ongoing events in an unfavorable light; many in the military felt betrayed by this inappropriate and negative press coverage and wanted to have nothing further to do with the press. Following Vietnam, the tension between First Amendment protections, generally accepted citizen right to know, and military resistance and desire for operational secrecy has led press-military relations through several different institutional forms. The embedded press system appears to be the best solution to date at balancing the needs of the three core constituencies (the press, the military, and the public); the questions remain whether that appearance is correct, what improvements remain to be made, and what, if any, vulnerabilities (for any of the constituents) the embedded press system creates. This research focuses on the embedded press system deployed during Operation Iraqi Freedom and should be of interest to those in the armed forces, the media, policymakers responsible for regulating press access, as well as the public at large. It attempts to answer the following questions: How effective was the embedded press system in meeting the needs of the three main constituencies (the press, the military, and the citizens of the United States)? What policy history led to the innovation of an embedded press system? Where are press-military relations likely to go in the future?

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 2004
Accession Number
ADA452561

Entities

People

  • Christopher Edward Paul
  • James J. Kim

Organizations

  • RAND Corporation

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Engineered Resilient Systems
  • Human Systems
  • Space

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Civil War
  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Foreign Relations
  • Governments
  • Information Operations
  • Iraqi-War
  • Military Applications
  • Military History
  • Military Operations
  • Military Personnel
  • Military Science
  • National Security
  • Personnel Management
  • Public Policy
  • Recreation
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Educational Psychology
  • International Journalism and Media Studies.
  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.