International Conflict and the Media

ACTIVITY 6: The Press and the Military

Introduction

The tension between a free press and national security is not new. Ever since the Civil War, the American press has been subjected to various degrees of restriction or censorship during wartime. Due to the unique circumstances surrounding each war, different relationships between the military and the press were created. A major influence in these restrictions has been the improvement of communications technology.

Student Objectives

• To understand that since the Civil War, when the United States has been engaged in an armed conflict, restrictions have been imposed upon the press.
• To understand that these restrictions have varied from war to war, in part because of changing communications technology.
• To establish a framework to examine all conflicts.
• To conduct research in a library or from resources in the classroom.

Time

2-6 class periods.

Materials

Copies of Readings 6A-H for each student.

Note

Each Reading in this activity is a case study which includes a discussion of an armed conflict and adiscussion of particular relationships between the press/media and the military during that conflict. As it is not necessary for students to know the relationships between the military and the pressduring every conflict, we recommend that students be exposed to only a few of these case studies. Teachers using this unit in an American History course, may wish to integrate these case studiesinto their normal coverage of these conflicts.

There are many possible ways to examine armed conflicts. A simple framework is to look at themin the following way:

Causes of the conflict -- What were the remote and proximate causes of the conflict? Were thereways in which a violent conflict could have been avoided?

The actual conflict -- What happened during the conflict?

Resolution -- How was the conflict resolved or ended? Could it have been resolved in other ways?

The consequences -- What were the short and long term results of the conflict? What were the unintended consequences of the conflict?

The actors -- Who were the actors in the conflict?

The motivations and expectations -- What were their motivations and expectations during the conflict?

Recommended Procedures

1. Divide the class into five groups. Distribute copies of Readings 6A, 6B, 6C, 6D and 6E, giving multiple copies of one Reading to each group. Have the students read their case studiesand discuss them in their groups.
2. While the students are reading their case studies, recreate the following framework on the chalkboard.
3. Ask the groups to fill in the blanks. Not all of the information is given in these readings! Eitherin class or for homework, students should seek answers in their American History textbooks orother sources to locate answers. Students may come up with different answers depending uponwhat sources they examine.
4. After you have examined the framework for each conflict, ask each group to report on governmental restrictions on the press during these conflicts. Point out that restrictions can include: censorship; preventing correspondents for getting access to the battlefield or access to military personnel; and controlling information released to the press through briefings.
5. Ask the students to consider in what other ways the government attempted to influence thepress or media.
6. Distribute copies of Readings 6F, 6G and 6H to each student, and ask them to read the handouts either in class or for homework. Again, have the students examine the causes,conflict, resolution and consequences of these wars.
7. During the second class period, inform the students that many problems that later emerged between the military and the press were due to the experiences in Vietnam, Grenada and Panama. The students should understand these case studies from both the position of the pressand the military. Have them consider:

What were the problems that came up on both sides?

If the students were military leaders, how might they respond to the press in the nextconflict if they believed that the press had been responsible for losing the last war?

If the students were news correspondents, how might they expect to be treated by the military in the next conflict?

What were the unique conditions in each of these cases that were not likely to be repeated?

8. Create a continuum on the chalkboard: draw a horizontal line; on the left end of the line write"No Censorship, Control or Restrictions." On the right end, write "Highly Censored,Controlled or Restricted."
9. Ask the students to place the wars on this continuum. Students should place the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and the Mexican-American War on the No Censorship end, and the Grenada and Panama interventions on the Highly Censored. Vietnam should fall toward theleft end, and the other wars should fall toward the right end of the line. Ask the students to justify their placements.

Framework of American Engagements.

Civil War	Spanish -AmericanWar	WorldWar I	WorldWar II	KoreanWar
Causes
Actual Conflict
Resolution
Long Term Consequences
Actors
Motivations andExpectations

Return to the Contents page for International Conflict and the Media.

Go to Activity 7.

Go to the Bibliography.