Mass media and the battle for public opinion in the global war on terror: Violence and legitimacy in Iraq

Abstract

The media are the deliverers of a message, and through this message the audience comprehends and forms opinions on events. This makes the mass media both an opportunity and a threat for the sides engaged in a conflict. An opportunity if the power of the mass media can be harnessed to one’s advantage and the message relayed. A threat if this ‘power’ is harnessed by an opposing party who use it to generate negative sentiment and publicity for your cause. This makes journalists a target in modern conflicts, in 2005 some 150 media workers were killed worldwide. 89 of them while they were on duty, singled out because of their work.1 Iraq is one of the most dangerous places in the world to practice the journalistic profession. Journalists are squeezed between the countless actors involved – the Iraqi government, insurgents, militias and the coalition forces.