Media and War: The Never ending Battle

 

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Though out class and though out history we have seen peoples voices being silenced countless times. Specifically in times of war when tensions are high and Journalists have often been the target of this silencing. However on the other hand the relationship between the press and the government in times of war have been rather synchronized. As much as the two clash in war, the media has in the past has helped get people to enlist in wars such as WW1 and WW2.

 

In WW1 it was the first of its kind and no one had ever seen a war quite like it before. During the war journalists were sent over as correspondents to report on the war and relay it back to the people at home. This caused many journalists to see battle first hand and gain a true understand of what it was like to be on the first lines. They also had to place themselves in harms way just to get a story. 

Though they had been there to write carefully crafted massages back to the US. Although, how could they write a fairy tail story about a war when they saw bodies and tragedy everyday? As a journalist you are called to write the truth and to educate the people about the truth as best as you can. So this caused conflict between the way certain journalists saw the war and the way the US wanted them to report the war. 

 

In World War 2 journalists were publicly putting down our enemy side which was Germany. This was issue because Journalism isn’t  supposed to be biased so that the viewers are able to make up’s their own mind about the situation. 

However, when the media started to tell people how they should feel about something it creates a huge divide and also puts the publication in a box because they are then know to be either right Republican, Democratic, or Liberal. This is know as the objectivity standard which is what we have today in journalism. It makes sure that the stories are objective and as factual as possible.  

In an article by the Guardian They  spoke out about what it was like for journalists to speak out about war during WW2 and how it reached a point that journalists were just publishing things that were complete fiction. This speaks to our patriotism as a country. Especially in war times it it easy to see a whole country as the enemy when usually we are only at war with that countries leaders. So all of this defamation and fiction that was posted about Germany and its people most likely  had lasting effects on the people in the country who had nothing to do with the issue in any way. 

 

Though the media has always had a complicated relationship with war and with the government, the truth is that neither of them can survive without the other. If there is ever a war or a global conflict again the government would be free to make any decisions they want without the public knowing. 

However, this would lead to a lot more corrupt behavior and it would lead to the public being a lot more in the dark. On the other hand the government certain legal obligations keep the press in line as well and make sure that they are relaying the news properly. 

EOTO#1 The Man Who Would Be Heard

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 William Lloyd Garrison was a fearless abolitionist in the 1800’s. He was very passionate and outraged at the idea of slavery. He worked tirelessly for many years as an abolitionist as well as fighting for women’s rights later in his life. He was the creator of the publication the liberator which was a publication that published works about the injustice’s of slavery and politics. It was meant to educate others about how wrong slavery was, it was used as a way to have the voices of those who were fed up about the situation heard. 

 

For example, the Liberator published works of other famous abolitionists like Fredric Douglas. At this time the fact that The Liberator was publishing the works of Black Abolitionists it was very unusual and it was just another thing that set the liberator apart from other publications. The publications main demographic was the freed slave population of that time because they would be the group of people who would have a main interest in the subject matter of the work that was published. Which is why contributions like Fredric Douglass’s made such an impact.

 

                                                                

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Though all of this was really good and called a lot of attention to the injustices that were taking place at that time it made a lot of people angry. Especially since Garrison was a Caucasian man who was sticking up for the rights and lives of African American people at their time. Which helped to bridge the gape of trust between the Black and White population in someways.

 

Since African American people had few rights and slaves had no rights they were hardly seen as people. Garrison often had many threats against his life so much to the point that there were at times bounties on his head. This goes to show just how dedicated William Garrison was to the cause, because he was willing to possibly put his life on the line for what he believed in.

 

The paper ran for about 30 years and in that time they always pressed the issue about the detriment slavery had and how it was a terrible thing for the society. At the top of every issue was the papers Mantra which was “Our country is the world our countrymen are Mankind”. This mantra is talking about how we as people are responsible for each other and how we are all united and equal. 

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Another thing that set the paper apart was the fact that at the top of each issue there was an illustration that spoke to another issue about slavery. This was helpful because it allowed people to physically see what caring conditions would look like and show a different and more authentic side to what was going on at the time with slavery. 

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The legacy and impact that the Liberator had surpasses the years that it was in print. When it finally did end Garrison published one final farewell. And after the liberator went down he still continued he work as an activists however, he had shifted his Main focus to women’s rights, however he cared a lot about equality.The liberator though it was just a publication was fighting a war on ideals. It challenged the status quo of thought which was that slavery was acceptable. Because of publications like the Liberator the writing world has forever been impacted.