Media In The Vietnam War Essay

The Vietnam War is known as one of the most brutal wars that the U.S. took part in. In Vietnam, the Vietnam war is known as the “American War” or the “Second Indochina War” (Rosen, 2). The war started as a conflict between the Republic of Vietnam, South Vietnam, and the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, North Vietnam (Cosmas, 329). The war began in 1957 and ended in the spring of 1975, lasting a total of 18 years (Cosmas, 329). Although the North Vietnamese lost the most people in the Vietnam War, they still won. North Vietnam did have some advantages in weaponry, the M-30 and the RPG-7, but the real reason they won was because of their overpowering desire to win.

Write an essay that offers a critical examination of the concept of the ‘guilty media’ thesis in respect of any war of your choice

This essay will discuss to what degree the media can be blamed for the United States’ loss in the Vietnam conflict ending 1975. It will be based predominantly on key written resources on the subject, but it will also contain - by means of an interview - certain first-hand observations from a Vietnam War veteran.

During the Vietnam War, Americans were greatly influenced by the extensive media coverage of the war. Before the 1960’s and the intensification of the war, public news coverage of military action was constrained heavily by the government and was directed by Government policy. The Vietnam War uniquely altered the perception of war in the eyes of American citizens by bringing the war into their homes. The Vietnam War was the first U.S uncensored war resulting in the release of graphic images and unaltered accounts of horrific events that helped to change public opinion of the war like nothing it had ever been. This depiction by the media led to a separation between the United States government and the press; much of what was reported flouted

The Vietnam War had no restrictions on what the media could and couldn’t cover, making a very public war. Journalists from big companies and small towns went to Vietnam to cover what was happening. Some went for the excitement and adventure. Others wanted to be on page one and be part of the exclusive combat correspondent club. These journalists were taking any information they could get and were sending it back to for American people to view. These journalists could even go into North Vietnam, if they had the courage too. Some journalists, based of what they saw, believed that the war was unwinnable. The military ended up blaming the media for the loss because the turned the American people against the troops in Vietnam through the information

The Vietnam War proved to governments all over the world that, in order to have a successful military campaign, some form of censorship needs to take place. The Washington Post has reported that due to the effects of the media in Vietnam, “every U.S. military engagement since… has featured attempts to control the media” (Hajela 2006, para. 13) which demonstrates how, since Vietnam, governments have been trying to avoid a similar reaction. Journalists who also reported in Vietnam recall interviewing generals with media handlers present in later conflicts, and mention, in relation to the censorship in Vietnam that, “[they] don't think that in our lifetimes we will ever see that kind of freedom again.” (Hajela 2006, para. 14) The Vietnam War not only made people aware of the need for censorship, but also the power the media holds, which was made clear in the changing attitudes of the media. This is made clear through public reactions and the timing of which they began to support withdrawals from Vietnam. The Department of Veterans’ Affairs, of the Australian government, highlights the power of the media, stating that, “opposition to the war, as the ALP had learnt to its cost in 1966, was not a vote winner… [however in] 1969… it was electorally popular to oppose the war,” (Australian Government Department of Veterans’ Affairs 2015, para. 2) This emphasises the power of the

It was Nixon’s hope that by attacking the reporting of the war it would make him appear more credible, especially when the Gallup Poll indicated that “almost two-thirds of Americans doubted that he was being candid with them about the Vietnam War” (Pach 560). Unfortunately for the Administration this did little to change public opinion about the war (Pach

Vietnam was the first war that allowed full freedom to the press, allowing the media to cover the war in their own light. Without censorship, appalling images showed the public the sites of war they had never seen before. Many people believe that the media started the lack of support for the Vietnam War. For example, the Tet Offensive would become “one of the most controversial and climactic events in which the media played a role” (). Until the Tet Offensive, the media had portrayed the U.S. winning the war. However, when the North Vietnamese sprung an attack on the U.S. embassy in Saigonthe, the American public felt as if they were there. As the media started to influence the public through television and magazines, people began to doubt

The Vietnam War was considered to be the first televised war, with many people watching the horrors of the war in the safety of their own homes, but what was the influence of the Media on the Attitudes of the Australian Public and returning troops? The Vietnam War was the first war in which the media was so involved in showing the destruction and devastation of the abilities that war can produce. The types of media during the War was very broad but got the news around very quickly as television, radio and newspapers were the most common source of media coverage, as well as many photographs that were distressing. These photographs showed the public the severity and danger of the war in a more justified way compared to the graphic images the American media used, although there was still some disturbing images that left

war the enemy would be in uniform and it was clear who to kill who not

Vietnam was a country divided into two by communism in the North and capitalism in the South. The Vietnam War, fought between the years 1959 and 1975, was, in essence, a struggle by nationalists in the north to unify the nation under a communist government. This was a long standing conflict between the two sides that had been occurring for years. It wasn’t until 1959 when the USA, stepped in, on the side of southern Vietnamese, to stop the spread of communism. It was a war that did not capture the hearts and minds of the American people as it was viewed as a war that the US army couldn’t win and so the government lost the peoples support for the war. This ultimately led to the withdrawal of the US army from Vietnam. Some people, like

In the 1950's, the United States had begun to send troops to Vietnam and during the following 25-year period, the ensuing war would create some of the strongest tensions in US history. Almost 3 million US men and women were sent thousands of miles to fight for what was a questionable cause. In total, it is estimated that over 2 million people on both sides were killed.

Media and American Withdrawal From Vietnam The history of Vietnam is characterised by struggles for independence since French rule in 1859 after the French took Saigon, and a great ability in warfare and continual determined resistance to foreign domination. Major military involvement by American armed forces came after events such as Russian communist revolution in 1917 and the Korean War in the 1950's; these events put the America people in a period of moral panic with McCarthyism, and domino theory. After the French defeat and the following Geneva conference in 1954, where only a verbal military truce was agreed.

In times of War, the media plays a crucial role both in reporting, monitoring and giving updates. During the Vietnam War of 1955-1975, the American press played crucial roles of reporting until it ended up shifting its tone under the influence of occurrence of some events like the Tet Offensive, the My Lai Massacre, the bombing of Cambodia and leaking of Pentagon papers resulting into lack of trust in the press (Knightly 1975). From the beginning of the war up to present times there have been undying debates over the role of media in the war. The have been various criticisms over the American News Media’s actions and influences on the outcome of the war. The debate is embedded on the particular political assumptions perceived across the

This effect does not refer to the sole influence of CNN on policymaking, but rather on the power of global media networks to determine political processes through selective coverage of certain issues. This is particularly important, as most of the public rely on the media for access to foreign policy information (Brown & Vincent, 1995). Gilboa notes that: “The [CNN] concept was initially suggested by politicians and officials haunted by the Vietnam media myth, the confusion of the post'' Cold War era, and the communications revolution. Despite evidence to the contrary (Hallin, 1986), many leaders still believe that critical television coverage caused the American defeat in Vietnam. Since then, many have viewed the media as an adversary to government policies in areas such as humanitarian intervention and international negotiation.” (Gilboa, 2005, p. 37)