Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4750 words

Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay - Essay Example Evidence abounds that while some journalists lapped up such handouts and other Government-supplied material inadvertently, some others did it in good faith, while yet others did that in return for consideration. Understandably, therefore, the message they convey to the American citizens is that the Government is in full control of every situation. However, not many Americans seem to believe such rosy reports; they read between the lines, especially as doubts have been cast on the credibility of such media outlets as work as unofficial spokespersons of the Government. Public opinion in the United States has crystallized against torture in these two detention camps, despite the administration using the media for its own ends.For media outlets like Al Jazeera and Al Arabia, onthe other hand, any stick is good enough to beat theUnited States with, and, as such, they brainwashtheir essentially Arab audiences against the UnitedStates. Their message is that the days of USsupremacy are stric tly numbered. As such, there isa basic similarity between the mainstream mediain the United States and such media outlets in theArab world, in that for neither are facts sacred. Within the United States, while the liberaltraditions of the Democratic Party militate against detention camps and deprivation of the due process of law even to suspected terrorists, the conservative baggage of the Republicans is comfortable with them. Finally, the basic connection between Abu Ghraib and the Guantanamo Bay is that both are detention camps that have hit the headlines for human rights abuses. _____ "Federal authorities are investigating dozens ofAmerican television stations for broadcasting items produced by the Bush administration and major corporations, and passing them off as normal news. Some of the fake news segments talked of success in the war in Iraq." (Buncombe, Andrew; May 29, 2006) Investigators sought information about stations across the country after a report produced by a campaign group detailed the extraordinary extent of the use of such items. (Buncombe, Andrew, May 29, 2006) The report, by the non-profit Center for Media and Democracy, found that over a 10-month period at least 77 television stations were using the faux news broadcasts, known as Video News Releases (VNRs) (Buncombe, Andrew; May 29, 2006). "We know we only had partial access to these VNRs, and yet we found 77 stations using them," said Diana Farsetta, one of the researchers of the group. (Buncombe, Andrew; May 29, 2006) "I would say it's pretty extraordinary. The picture we found was much worse than we (had) expected going into the investigation in terms of just how widely these got played and how frequently these prepackaged segments were put on the air," she added. Public relations companies, commissioned to produce these segments by corporations had, according to her, become increasingly sophisticated in their techniques to get the VNRs broadcast. They were now very good at mimicking what a real, independently produced television report would look like. (Buncombe, Andrew; May 29, 2006). The range of VNRs is wide. Among items provided by the Bush administration to news stations was one in which an Iraqi-American in Kansas City was seen saying "Thank you, Bush; Thank you, USA" in response to the 2003 fall of Baghdad. The footage was actually produced by the State Department, one of 20 Federal agencies that have produced and