March 18, 2003
Media Executives Discuss War Coverage on “The
Kalb Report”
By Greg
Licamele
Four of the most influential American media executives gathered for
“The Kalb Report” on Feb. 27, shedding light on war coverage,
Internet usage, and public faith in journalists, among other topics.
CNN Chairman Walter Isaacson, Associated Press President Louis Boccardi,
The New York Times Publisher Arthur Sulzberger, and National Public
Radio President Kevin Klose provided a robust discussion for the 350
people in attendance at the National Press Club.
Isaacson captured the convergence of ideas at the forum by describing
the role of a free press, whether on a battlefield or in cyberspace.
“The unfettered flow of information and ideas is the greatest driving
force of freedom around the world,” Isaacson said. “You can
see it happening — as information spread, tyrannies started to
come down. That’s more important now than ever when we’re
entering a world in which there’s a real clash between intolerance
and other approaches.”
As military personnel gather in the Middle East for a potential war
with Iraq, journalists also have packed their notepads and satellite
telephones and have become “embedded” with the troops. Klose
called for recognition of the dangers the Pentagon is undertaking in
providing journalists a chair in the battlefield.
“They’re taking in unarmed people who are going to be neutral
in anything that happens, who have to be protected at all times,”
Klose said to the audience comprised of GW students, Harvard Kennedy
School alumni and members of the National Press Club.
Isaacson said journalists travelling with the troops have witnessed
some of the most significant events, including Marines raising the American
flag at Iwo Jima, and that today’s military leaders openly want
reporters on hand. He said some generals cited the limited 1991 Persian
Gulf War coverage and how some of the most complex tank battles in history
occurred, yet there is no media record.
“There will be criticisms of what American troops do during the
war, but (the generals) believe the American troops are the best representatives
to the world as opposed to the briefers back in Washington,” Isaacson
said.
Sulzberger said that The New York Times Company, which includes the
New York-based newspaper and The Boston Globe, do not budget
for wars. Sulzberger noted that a total of 15 Times and Globe
reporters are travelling with the troops, while at least six additional
journalists will cover general assignments.
“We don’t budget for wars. We don’t budget for horrors.
We don’t budget for tragedies,” Sulzberger said. “We
budget for reasonable news cycles. If a Sept. 11 happens, then you burn
the budget because that’s our job. That’s our reason for being.”
Kalb asked if recent budget cuts and layoffs in the news media were
indicative of a larger issue within journalism. Boccardi said no, it’s
not a reflection of the news media, but of the world’s economic
realities.
“There were seven newspapers in New York when I started (as a reporter),”
Boccardi said. “When I left, there were four, then there were three.
Those papers didn’t fail because people stopped believing in the
First Amendment or because we lost our loyalty to the First Amendment.
They failed as businesses.”
One way in which media organizations are changing is through technology.
Klose said correspondents on the battlefield now use instant communications
via satellite phones. They also use the Internet to instantly distribute
news around the world.
Though there are pitfalls with the Internet such as copyright infringement,
Sulzberger looks at the medium with optimism and opportunism.
“How do you define the word newspaper?” Sulzberger asked.
“By the word ‘news’ or by the word ‘paper’?
I define it by the word ‘news.’ My greatest goal is the get
the news of The New York Times to as many people as I possibly
can. The Internet is an enormous tool for me to achieve that goal.”
Sulzberger added that the Internet is the second largest source of new
subscribers to the print edition of the newspaper.
As times change, Kalb noted, the American people have classified journalism
as a less-than-noble profession, yet, reporters are the communication
vehicle between citizens and their government. In a time of security
concerns at home and abroad, Kalb inquired about the relationship of
the reporter to the government.
“We’re helping citizens understand and probe into things that
government does or that it doesn’t do and learn the reasons why
those things happen,” Klose said.
“The Kalb Report,” which is underwritten by a grant from the
John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, is co-sponsored by GW’s
School of Media and Public Affairs, The Joan Shorenstein Center on Press,
Politics and Public Policy at Harvard University and the National Press
Club. GW and the National Press Club have produced 32 programs
in the “The Kalb Report” series since 1994.
Send feedback to: bygeorge@gwu.edu
