US Media Curtail Iraq War Coverage: Study
WASHINGTON - U.S. media reporting of the war in Iraq fell sharply in the second quarter of 2007, largely due to a drop in coverage of the Washington-based policy debate, a study released Monday said.
Taken together, the war’s three major story lines — the U.S. policy debate, events in Iraq and their impact on the U.S. homefront — slipped roughly a third, to 15 percent of an index of total news coverage, down from 22 percent in the first three months of the year. 
The study by the Project for Excellence in Journalism examined 18,010 stories that appeared between April 1 and June 29. Its “News Coverage Index” encompasses 48 outlets, including newspapers, radio, online, cable and network television.
The project is a research group studying and evaluating press performance. It describes itself as nonpartisan, nonideological and nonpolitical. The index is designed as an audit of a broad cross-section of U.S. news media.
The 2008 presidential campaign — with its crowded field for the Democratic and Republican party nominations — emerged as the top story in U.S. media in the second quarter, overtaking the Iraq policy debate, the biggest thread of the three Iraq-related storylines, the survey found.
Attention to the war dropped in all five media sectors surveyed. Network evening news, the sector that gave the war the greatest share of attention in the first quarter, scaled back more than 40 percent, from 33 percent in the first quarter to 19 percent in the second, the study showed.
On cable television, another leader in first-quarter coverage, the slide was nearly as great, from 23 percent of news reported to 14 percent — a drop of 39 percent, the project said.
The bulk of the fall took place after May 24, when Congress approved war funding without including troop withdrawal timetables. This was widely viewed by the media as a victory for President George W. Bush in a political battle with Congress sparked by his January 10 troop “surge” announcement.
“In the aftermath, the debate itself quieted, as did coverage,” the report said.
News from inside Iraq in the media surveyed became even more focused on Americans rather than Iraqis in the second quarter, the study found.
Fully 55 percent of coverage about events on the ground dealt with U.S. combat and casualties, U.S. troop activities and soldiers charged with crimes, it said.
© Reuters 2007.
u.s. media–accomplices before the fact.
Thank G-d for Common Dreams & the internet! I get information my friends have not even heard about.
is the war still going on?
hazmat –
“u.s. media–accomplices before the fact.”
– Before, during, and after, as the MurderStream Media is preparing the ground already for the attack on Iran. They need to ratchet down the always-glossed over coverage of Iraq in order to give the consumers a brief respite before the campaign roll-out in September.
“The bulk of the fall took place after May 24, when Congress approved war funding without including troop withdrawal timetables. This was widely viewed by the media as a victory for President George W. Bush in a political battle with Congress sparked by his January 10 troop “surge” announcement.
“In the aftermath, the debate itself quieted, as did coverage,” the report said.”
The debate among mediawhores & their escorts & sponsors, definitely, but out beyond the confines of the enablers, the xscreams got louder.
Once again this propoganda riddled media has failed the American people. There is no question and no debate that the majority of Americans want the troops out now. The democrats were voted into to congress to perform that task and they have failed us. If our media were doing it’s job the troops would be out already( one better they never would have been sent). What are they supposed to report? Today there was more death and loss in Iraq, everyday this war continues the hatred in the hearts and minds of common Iraqies increases. We the people have spoken, yet we have been ignored once again. The media blackout will not make the American opposition to this war go away, hopefully it will only embolden it!!
It is not a war in Iraq, we WON the war four years ago. We are helping the Iraqis develope their new form of democracy and that isn’t news.
News is, a pro football quarterback runs a dog fighting business, a bridge fell down that was supposed to fall down because structural engineers said it would fall someday. News is Paris Hilton and one of John McCains staff were arrested. There are several people running for the office of the presidency, among them a young black man and a female. Oh__ some guy named Rove quit on Bush, he heard Bush had his ass reamed out and it made him jealous.
War in Iraq? What can be reported that has not already been said a million or so times. Our troops are screwed, Iraq is ruined, their people are either dead or have left the country, or are trying to leave. The surge is workng, any serious problems over there are the fault of Iran.
Our media are doing what they have always done,___ they report the news. Of course I can remember when the news hour was fifty minutes of news and ten minutes of advertisements,___ that has reversed.
Our media is the best in the world. Our journalists are the best in the world. Our media advertising managers are the most savvy in the world. Our corporations can place their advertisements wherever they want. A system in which media outlets can thrive or go out of business is the best in the world. Our media is the most market-responsive in the world. And you consumers of media are not the market I am referring to. Ordinary people are not the media’s customers.
Kem, you are so right on.
where is news about Israeli influence on US government/politics?
Marsh.
No we declared victory a long time ago!
Marsh - Mission Accomplished - didn’t you get the memo? I have a picture of the boat.
Soeharto!! Nice touch compadre!!
For the rest of you who may be unaware; In the world of television - which now runs the ‘nuze’ bidnes - Content = advertising - Filler = programming (nuze - Jerry Springer - Jerry Seinfeld). Got it? They are making billions with this bidness model. Wall Street calls that the best of breed!!
KEM Patrick says “Our media are doing what they have always done,___ they report the news. Of course I can remember when the news hour was fifty minutes of news and ten minutes of advertisements,___ that has reversed.”
Not really. Respectfully, the news is no longer covered on television or radio. Sometimes you can catch some on low power FM radio or else you have to use the internet now. Thank God for that!!
Otherwise we are still looking for a not very smart blonde girl who jumped into a car with 3 stranger men in a foreign country called Aruba… the latest disappearing white child… minority children disappear all the time and do not get on what is called news programs -
Every morning show in the country now features new music acts during the news broadcasts - that are owned by the parent companies recording studios. Product placements occur for crap no one should need or eat throughout the morning news programs.
Sadly there are NEVER any stories about what Congress is about to do, only stories about what has already been signed sealed and delivered rapidly up your backside!! Debate? A thing of ancient Greece - the last democracy known to man.