The role of the media in the Gulf War was given a good deal of attention because of concerns raised by Ronald Reagan's incursion into Grenada, a battle that included restrictions on the press that were seen as unacceptable and as designed to prevent criticism of the action at home. Both the Bush Administration and the media were especially concerned about the issue of access, about whether the media would be told as much as it wanted to know about the conduct of the war or would be able to follow the troops right into battle. As it happened, the media played a major role in the Gulf War, with new technologies involving satellites and cable bringing the war directly into homes around the world and with correspondents broadcasting from the center of the action in Baghdad. Arguably, the way the media presented the war to viewers at home had much to do with how much support the war received, how well the Bush administration was able to carry through the policies it wished to implement for the conduct of the war. A question that needs to be analyzed is whether the image presented in the media was a misrepresentation of reality and whether the use of stereotypes of Iraq, Iraqis, and Arab people in general was so pervasive as to be a disservice to both Arabs and Americans alike.
The concern with public opinion both before and after a declaration of war has heightened as a consequence of the Vietnam War, perceived as a public relations disaster and as a war lost because of growing public dissatisfaction at home. Therefore, any President who feels it necessary to engage in war also feels it necessary to shape the story and to garner all the support possible. The U.S. has shied away from a number of conflicts--notably in Central America and in Bosnia--from fear of another Vietnam, a conflict entered on a temporary basis that drags on and draws in more and more troops and a greater and greater commitment. One reason for avoiding such ...