Embedded: The Media at War in Iraq An Oral History

by Bill Katovsky

In comparison to the Gulf War of 1991, in which the Pentagon controlled the news as tightly as possible, the war of 2003 was a wide-open affair for reporters. This was partly done to counteract propaganda coming from the Iraqi government; it was also an attempt to control and influence the news by keeping journalists under close watch. To this end, the Pentagon developed a "slick new public relations concept known as embedding." (xiii galley) Embedded journalists lived, ate, and traveled with the troops. They also came under enemy fire with the troops. In fact, as a group, the roughly 2,700 journalists in Iraq were more likely to be killed in combat than the quarter million American and British soldiers. Traveling with troops was generally safer and afforded better access, but what about journalistic ethics? That is question at the core of this fascinating book and one proves to have many different answers. Embedded is a collection of interviews conducted between April and June 2003 of 60 journalists, public affairs officers, and freelance photographers from a wide range of print, television, and radio sources. Their stories convey information, impressions, and anecdotes that could not be included in their official reports and are therefore quite revealing. They confront not only the risks, and allure, of reporting from a combat zone, but of getting too close to the story to remain objective (if true objectivity is even possible). This personal and often moving collection offers great insight into the most covered war in history. --Shawn Carkonen

Genres: Nonfiction

Hardcover

First published September 1, 2003

Reviews

[Melanie G · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was engrossed by the different views and experiences of the media personnel who opted to go to Iraq and "embed". I enjoyed the short stories presented by each persons' encounter. I was saddened by the stories of loss, intrigued by the personal choice to go, and entertained by some of the accounts.

Time Magazine Photographer Yuri Kozyrev account was humble, touching and not so arrogant as some of the reporters.

Los Angeles Times David Zucchino provided an interesting and thought provoking account that prompts you to want to research more deeply into the money found, and attempted theft. How severe were the punishments? Were more monies found?

The New York Time Reporter John Burns presented such a passionate argument regarding accurate reporting on the genocide being committed by the Sadam regime, and speculated that had all the news agencies been presenting the horrifying facts prior to the war, the world audience would stand in support for a war in Iraq, without having to go forward with a dubious WMD argument.

What really alarmed me was repeatedly reading that the war is over. I know the book was written a few years ago. However, the arrogance to assert the war is over when the troops were and are actively losing their lives befuddles and offends me.

[Duane Bowker · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of 58 oral accounts from reporters, photographers, public affairs officers and others on their experiences during the first few weeks of the Iraq War in 2003. As the title suggests, many of the correspondents interviewed for the book were embedded with coalition forces but there seem to be just as many accounts from "unilaterals" (non-embedded). It's really an interesting patchwork of stories and, in the composite, gives quite an impression.