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A few days into the war, the Iraqi government is stepping up restrictions on the few Western reporters left in Baghdad, and threatening that they could be taken into "protective custody." Before the bombs started falling, the International Federation of Journalists appealed to military leaders on both sides to respect the rights of reporters, as IFJ's Sarah De Jong explains to Bob.
In the end, Boston Globe editors didn't have to decide whether to leave their correspondent in Baghdad. The Iraqi government made that decision for them. Globe reporter David Filipov tells Brooke about getting expelled from Iraq for unauthorized use of his satellite phone.
The ground invasion of Iraq has begun, and this time journalists are along for the ride. NPR's John Burnett is embedded with the Command Battalion of the 1st Marine Division. In his weekly check-in with OTM, Burnett shares frank stories about some of the more personal issues affecting the reporters in the desert.
Millions of Americans are putting down their remote controls and tuning this war in on their computer screens. In addition to the mainstream media dot-coms, a number of lesser-known websites provide useful information about the unfolding events. Slate.com intern Avi Zenilman gives Bob a rundown of his favorites.
Following last week's assassination of Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic, the government has imposed a state of emergency and imposed restrictions on the media. Among the more than 1,000 people who have been arrested is Ceca Raznatovic, the country's most famous pop star and the widow of a notorious warlord. Agence France Presse correspondent Alexandra Niksic fills Bob in on the story.
Sometimes it's hard to get a grasp of what's going on in the current war, but history can be remarkably instructive. In the book The First Casualty: The War Correspondent as Hero and Myth-Maker, Philip Knightley gives an expansive review of this history, and the place of journalists in it. He talks with Brooke about the lives and tales of war reporters.
Highlights from Past ShowsIn a rare prime-time press conference last week, President Bush again made his case for military action in Iraq. It left some observers scratching their heads and wondering who was to blame for the remarkable lack of information presented that evening - the Administration, or the media? Bob examines the role of the White House press corps on the brink of war.
More than a quarter of a million American soldiers are deployed and ready for action in Iraq, and they're not alone. There are currently about 800 reporters, who have been prepped for the battlefield and assigned to specific military units. NPR's John Burnett is one of them, and gives Brooke a view from the ground in Kuwait.
On the Media is funded by The Bydale Foundation, The Ford Foundation, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Overbrook Foundation.
