LESSON 15:NATIONAL SECURITY AND THE MEDIA
10 October 2001 (0830-1130)
Col Edward G. Murdock 245-3256

Let the people know the facts and the country will be safe.

Abraham Lincoln

1. Introduction.

     a. The framers of the Bill of Rights believed that a free flow of information and ideas was essential to the proper functioning of a democratic society. In addition to providing information to the electorate and fostering debate on the issues to be voted upon, the press would also perform an important watchdog function, protecting against any tendency of the state to aggrandize its power and abuse the rights of its citizens. Some argued that this was the core freedom upon which all our other liberties would depend.
     b. The Fourth Estate has since evolved into a specially protected institution in our society (by virtue of the First Amendment to the Constitution), as well as a very competitive, commercial enterprise that plays an increasingly powerful role in the American self-governing process. The ability to identify, frame, and prioritize issues for the public agenda adds a dimension of enormous potential to media coverage. Not only reporters and editors, but also special interest groups, government officials, and political leaders have on occasion sought to create news events, knowing the power of the mass media to influence public opinion and policy.
     c. The evolving role of the media in the development of American foreign and defense policy is in part a response to the growing public appetite in this country for information about issues that have the potential to affect our daily lives. The national security matters that receive public attention, however, frequently present a dilemma for both policymakers and journalists alike in defining the precise nature of media participation. On one hand, domestic support for foreign policy initiatives is critical to any significant or sustained effort, and the media can provide a useful forum for building national consensus in support of government policies. And occasionally "media diplomacy" between world leaders can be the most effective method of influencing fast-breaking events or communicating positions on sensitive negotiations. On the other hand, a good deal of foreign policy, and especially national security policy, is most effectively managed with quiet diplomacy in an environment of confidence or secrecy. There are no hard and fast rules.
     d. Military professionals must understand the role of the media as a national institution and the relationship of the military and the media in the context of a free society. The media, because of the wide reach and immediate impact, can exert pressure on national security policymakers which may affect both the timing and substance of policy decisions. This may not always be in the public interest. Many also believe that the manner in which military operations are covered by the media can erode public support for those operations. However, veteran military affairs correspondent Drew Middleton has warned that: Democracies only win wars when they have popular support. That support can only come from an informed public. If there is censorship, then let it be flexible enough to tell the bad and the good . . . These are dangerous times. Only an informed America will weather them.
     e. As future players in the national security policy process, you will have opportunities to help further refine the relationship of the media to the military element of national power. This lesson presents important issues for your consideration as strategic leaders and as citizens.

2. Learning Objectives.
     a. Appreciate the importance of independent news reporting and the free flow of information in a democratic society.
     b. Understand the various roles of the news media in the national security decision-making process.
     c. Realize the value of a positive relationship between the military and the media, and the institutional biases that make such a relationship a challenge.
     d. Evaluate the Army's ability to convey its landpower role and capability to the American public by means of a professional relationship with the media.
     e. Understand how the information presented to the domestic and international public must be considered when identifying the ways to achieve the national military objectives.

3. Student Requirements.
     a. Tasks. Actively participate in the media panel questions and answers session and contribute to subsequent seminar group discussion.
     b. Required Reading.
          (1) U.S. Army War College, Department of National Security and Strategy. Readings in War, National Security Policy, and Strategy. Carlisle Barracks: 2001. Vol. II: (Student Issue)
               (a) Snow, Donald M. and Eugene Brown, eds. Puzzle Palaces and Foggy Bottom. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1994. “The Influencers II: The Public and the Media.” Ch. 7, pp. 206-232.                (b) Nik Gowing. Media Coverage: Help or Hindrance in Conflict Prevention?, 1997. Report to the Carnegie Commission on Preventing Deadly Conflict. Pp. 1-33.
     c. Suggested Readings.
     (1) Frank Stech, “Winning CNN Wars,” Parameters Vol. XXIV (Autumn 1994): 37-56. (Reserve Reading Shelf)
     (2) Wiegand, Krista and David Paletz, “The Elite Media and the Military-Civilian Culture Gap,” Armed Forces and Society, Vol. 27 (Winter 2001): 183-204. (Reserve Reading Shelf)
     (3) Dauber, Cori David, “Image as Argument: The Impact of Mogadishu on U.S. Military Intervention,” Armed Forces and Society, Vol. 27 (Winter 2001): 205-229. (Reserve Reading Shelf)

4. Points to Consider.
     a. What is the greatest potential national service that can be performed by the news media for the United States and its citizens? How well are they performing this service?
     b. Do the commercial aspects of corporate print, radio, and television journalism conflict with the public interest?
     c. What is the role of the media in the national security policy process? What constraints does it impose? How does it influence the policymaker?
     d. Should advocating a free and robust media worldwide be a priority in American foreign policy? Why or why not?
     e. The Gulf War was the first major war in which continuous, instantaneous audio and video reporting was possible. It was also the first major war since Korea in which systematic military restrictions were placed on the media in the war zone. The American media were deeply criticized for acceding to these restrictions. What lessons can you derive from this experience for future military-media relations?
f. How should the Army, as an institution, work with the media to better inform the American public of its land power role and capability?