Effect of Media During Iraq War
The Effect of the Media during the Iraq War After the tragedy of September 11th, 2001, the American people looked to their leader, President George W. Bush, to get them through this horrific time. After almost two years, President Bush decided to invade the country of Iraq on March 19th, 2003, starting a war that would last almost a decade (CNN.com). The media coverage of the war that was shown throughout the U.S imitated the idea that the war was positive and showed a pro-war point of view. Due to the majority of Americans only receiving information from a handful of news outlets, the public’s opinion on war was influenced by the media being broadcasted.
Even before the announcement by the President that the U.S would invade Iraq; the media was responsible for portraying Saddam Hussein to be a danger to America as well as its national security, even though he had nothing to do with the terrorist attacks. Many people either did not realize or did not care that the information media outlets were reporting came from somewhere within the U.S government. During this time, technology was booming which allowed the war to be shown on internet sites making it the first war ever covered online. Due to development of technology, any information regarding the war was aired rapidly. The advancements in technology created an atmosphere where the public’s opinion, idea, and thoughts were heavily persuaded by the coverage of the media. The invasion of Iraq along with the overwhelming attention the media provided showed how the media’s role during the war affected the public opinion of the United States citizens. During the immediate aftermath of 9/11, the threat Iraq potentially was viewed as on the U.S was not acknowledged by the people or by media outlets. President Bush wanted the public’s support in regards to the invasion of Iraq which they built off of the portrayal of the Hussein administration. With the support of government institutions such as Congress; they
Even before the announcement by the President that the U.S would invade Iraq; the media was responsible for portraying Saddam Hussein to be a danger to America as well as its national security, even though he had nothing to do with the terrorist attacks. Many people either did not realize or did not care that the information media outlets were reporting came from somewhere within the U.S government. During this time, technology was booming which allowed the war to be shown on internet sites making it the first war ever covered online. Due to development of technology, any information regarding the war was aired rapidly. The advancements in technology created an atmosphere where the public’s opinion, idea, and thoughts were heavily persuaded by the coverage of the media. The invasion of Iraq along with the overwhelming attention the media provided showed how the media’s role during the war affected the public opinion of the United States citizens. During the immediate aftermath of 9/11, the threat Iraq potentially was viewed as on the U.S was not acknowledged by the people or by media outlets. President Bush wanted the public’s support in regards to the invasion of Iraq which they built off of the portrayal of the Hussein administration. With the support of government institutions such as Congress; they