The Fickle Mainstream Media

The New York Times observes that the major broadcasting companies are no longer interested in sending full-time correspondents to Iraq. It seems that the news just isn't that exciting, even given the 130,000 US troops still in theater.

Michael Yon, an independent reporter who relies on contributions from Internet users to report from both areas of conflict, has already perceived a shift in both media and reader attention from Iraq to Afghanistan. “Afghanistan was the forgotten war; that’s what they were calling it, actually,” he said. “Now it’s swapping places with Iraq.”

For Mr. Yon and others who continue to cover Iraq, the cutbacks are a disheartening reminder of the war’s diminishing profile at a time when about 130,000 United States service members remain on duty there. More than 4,200 Americans and an undetermined number of Iraqis have died in fighting there since 2003.

ABC, CBS and NBC declined to speak on the record about their news coverage decisions. But representatives for the networks emphasized that they would continue to cover the war and said the staff adjustments reflected the evolution of the conflict in Iraq from a story primarily about violence to one about reconstruction and politics.

Cheap, ignorant bastards - not as if this isn't an important news issue. The conflict and the stories here aren't done yet. Fortunately, we can always go to the BBC to get the news that the US broadcasters don't appreciate.

UPDATE: And for that matter, the major US broadcasters don't seem to think much of events in Gaza.

Comments

[Ray]

As a follower, it seems to this blog reader that withdrawal of main correspondents does of course leaves US troops without major representation. Very dodgy- can leaving the US and some world public eventually believing that it isn't as that important anymore. That feeds back to the troops. It is, I suggest, crucial for the major news networks to keep someone on the ground to continue interdepartmental news experience and to monitor events as they happen for a truer picture; otherwise that which is reported likely to be second-hand or more and potententially misleading -and we can get that, even with experienced correspondents doing their best in the field.

R.