Do you think the gov is regretting.....

[sq764]

...letting reporters travel around with the soldiers?

I think in theory they thought a quick, dominating war would look great to the public and how better to deliver that than have the media right there.

I cannot imagine we will ever see them allowed to be embedded with the troops ever again.

[BillW]

Originally posted by sq764
...letting reporters travel around with the soldiers?

I think in theory they thought a quick, dominating war would look great to the public and how better to deliver that than have the media right there.

I cannot imagine we will ever see them allowed to be embedded with the troops ever again.

I think the quick thing was mostly psy/ops (and the most optimistic end of the plan spectrum). The dominating part is pretty much working out ... lots of 300 to 0 shutouts, a 1500 to 0 reported today.

I think the embeds are working out pretty well also i.e. I don't think any intelligence breaches have occurred (and that A$$hole Hussein gets to sit at home with a beer and a hotdog and watch 100,000 troops making a beeline for his front door :)) Some adaptation is necessary by the press corp and American public to get used to the ammount and timing of the reporting.

Bill

[sq764]

I did see that one reporter for the London Times was tossed out of Iraq by a US General because he estimated they were 100 miles outside of Baghdad on the main road. Apparently they were almost exactly 100 miles out and the general considered it a potential security breach.

[so.cal.fan]

Wouldn't the military have the option to expel the reporters if they thought it was in the best interest of safety or security?

[Tom]

No matter what the outcome, the public needs to see the war firsthand. Just suppoting a war is not enough - you have to know what you are sending your troops into. The horror of war has to be brought home. I think the first Gulf War coverage might have been too much "this is a turkey shoot" covrage and a lot of people thought we would go over there, break out the joysticks, and go home. Not so. If ever there was a frightening sight, it was the hospital where US troops found discarded GI uniforms, one a female's, with the ID ripped off, and in another room, an apparent torture chamer with a car battery and wire set up.
The TV footage from Viet Nam was approprate for a war. You have to know what is going on - good and bad, on both sides.
Not for entertainment, not for strategy, but so that you know just how hard you have to try to find and keep peace.

[BillW]

Originally posted by so.cal.fan
Wouldn't the military have the option to expel the reporters if they thought it was in the best interest of safety or security?

Sure, all is fair etc.

A Bahraini reporter from a more moderate Arab TV network called the incident where Irqis were firing their weapons into the Tigris (supposedly hunting a downed US pilot) a dog and pony show. When it comes to truth, the Iraqis apparently have little tolerance, he and 2 crew were arrested and sentenced to death. They bought themselves out of that mess and showed up in Kuwait yesterday after escaping.

In the case of the US/Brit/Aus embeds, these guys have spent a month or more with these troops and have got to know them and build a trust. The reporters are schooled in security and also understand who is keeping them alive so they are pretty careful. With all this, I'm sure the military holds the final say on who stays and who goes.

Bill