Humanitarian Communication Topic 3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvG8wphJd8ohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arfMd_ar91o

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1kzd-bdv2w&list=PL0054CAD1367AFC37

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3mfXnFtwQc&list=PLDAGAiRAQASxQB2r_nnjpISWyvmzaOTWi

Indian cyclone• BBC: India's Cyclone Phailin: Hundreds of thousands return home• The authorities have promised that power and road access would be restored in most areas

by Monday evening • Hundreds of thousands of people who were evacuated before Cyclone Phailin crashed into

eastern India have begun returning to their homes. • But many will remain in shelters as their homes and businesses were wrecked by the

strongest cyclone in 14 years.• As the storm weakened a vast relief operation got under way in Orissa and Andhra Pradesh

states, where officials say up to one million were displaced.• Mass evacuations managed to keep the death toll to a bare minimum.• Officials said 22 people were killed - all but one of the deaths were in Orissa.• The cyclone flattened many coastal homes, uprooted trees and blocked roads in the two

states but the evacuation effort - described by officials as "the biggest in India's history for such an event" - ensured the death toll remained low.

• Correspondents say before the cyclone hit, the authorities moved - sometimes forcibly - nearly one million people into temporary shelters set up in schools and government buildings.

• The move has earned the Indian authorities rare praise for their preparedness. • In 1999 a cyclone killed more than 10,000 people in Orissa. • Thousands of families have started going back to their homes on Monday morning, the BBC's

Sanjoy Majumder reports from Berhampur in Orissa.

• D Mirror except –• Zubin Zaman, Humanitarian Programme Manager of Oxfam India, said: “Roads

are blocked by fallen trees, communication and power lines are down. • "Damage to buildings is widespread so is the impact on the crops of the region.

There are reports of damages to fishing boats and nets of fishing communities in Puri and Ganjam in the state of Odisha.

• “People have started returning to their villages from the shelter places. One of the immediate requirements for these communities is to restore their houses.

• “Water and sanitation remains a major concern for the people living in the low laying areas as most of the drinking water sources have been contaminated.”

• Devendra Tak, in Puri for Save the Children said: “It is still early, so it’s difficult to know the full extent of the damage. On the ground, people are starting to come out, there are children on the streets. The wind is still quite strong although the rains have let up.

• “The wind speed is very high, so we anticipate that there may be delays in being able to reach the most vulnerable families with aid.”

Huge coverage of Vietnam war and gradual move into reporting humanitarian aspects of war began to change the approach of the media – the great Ed Murrow had done this at end of WWII when he reported the scenes of horror at liberated Nazi concentration camps but Vietnam, the first TV war, really brought it home to audiences.As the global reach of major newspapers and broadcasters increased and technology made instant reporting possible, the reporting of war and humanitarian crises became a more regular part of news content. But not all conflicts were covered and the questions began to be asked about why some were covered and some not. Did the media cover important events or did events become important because they were covered? Who controls coverage?Novelty or sheer scale can be criteria.

Rise in humanitarian reporting

Ed Murrow from Buchenwald:Permit me to tell you what you would have seen, and heard…It will not be pleasant listening…for I propose to tell you ofBuchenwald. It is on a small hill about four miles outsideWeimar, and it was one of the largest concentration campsIn Germany…the prisoners crowded up behind the wire. We entered…There surged around me an evil-smelling horde. Men and boys reached out to touch me; they were in rags and the remnants of uniform. Death had already marked many of them, but they were smiling with their eyes…Weproceeded to a small courtyard. The wall was abouteight feet high…There were two rows of bodies stackedup like cordwood. They were thing and very white. Someof the bodies were terribly bruised…Some had been shot through the head…all except two were naked…more thanfive hundred men and boys lay there in two neat piles…the county round about was pleasing to the eye, and the Germans were well fed and well dressed. (Ed Murrow, 1968, In Search of Light: The Broadcasts of Edward R. Murrow 1938-1961 (London: Macmillan)

Framing of conflicts and humanitarian crises:

• At time of Vietnam framing dominated by the Cold War; by the interests of Western states. Few newspapers, TV/radio stations questioned this basic frame. There was a broadly accepted set of criteria that placed “Western democracy and values” at the centre of the coverage. This is set out very well by Herman and Chomsky in their propaganda model – a consensus among political elites, business, media owners and advertisers meant that the overwhelming discourse was one accepting the basic US position.

• In early 1960s, few were willing to question Western government policies and were subject to “flak” from elites, business sector, media owners and powerful lobby groups.

• Ideology, fear of the “other” very important in framing.• Domino theories, militarized frontiers and shipping routes all part of the

Cold War frame for competition and conflict.• Communism seen as the new fascism – don’t repeat Munich 1938 by

appeasing expansionist Soviet Union

Vietnam

● Tonkin Gulf, the Media and warIn his book, The War Within: America's Battle Over Vietnam, Tom Wells gives a dramatic account of the Tonkin Gulf incidents. He says that American media "described the air strikes that Johnson launched in response as merely `tit for tat' — when in reality they reflected plans the administration had already drawn up for gradually increasing its overt military pressure against the North.“

Why was news reporting so wrong? Wells blames the media's "almost exclusive reliance on U.S. government officials as sources of information" — as well as "reluctance to question official pronouncements on 'national security issues.'“ Daniel Hallin's classic book The "Uncensored War" observes that journalists had "a great deal of information available which contradicted the official account [of Tonkin Gulf events]; it simply wasn't used. The day before the first incident, Hanoi had protested the attacks on its territory by Laotian aircraft and South Vietnamese gunboats.“ What's more, "It was generally known...that `covert' operations against North Vietnam, carried out by South Vietnamese forces with U.S. support and direction, had been going on for some time."

Did lack of good reporting allow the US to intervene?

● In the absence of independent journalism, the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution — the closest thing there ever was to a declaration of war against North Vietnam — sailed through Congress on Aug. 7The resolution authorized the president "to take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against the forces of the United States and to prevent further aggression.“

● This style of reporting – accepting government accounts and being swayed by calls for patriotism or reluctance to question on issues of “national security” then dominated US reporting for several years until doubts among politicians and the military gave journalists the chance to be more courageous

One American academic’s view of the press and Vietnam as a consumer:I decided to develop a unit on the Vietnam War era because I am a product of this era. When I think back to my grammar school days during the 1960’s, I can’t help but remember the first time I heard about Vietnam. Mr. Creto, my 7th grade teacher, made reference to the fact that the boys in our class had better ready themselves to serve in Vietnam…When I got to high school I started to notice articles in the local paper concerning the Vietnam War. The articles portrayed the U. S. (the good guys) fighting to stop communism (the bad guys) in Vietnam. I never once questioned the writer’s objectivity or whether or not the facts that were reported were accurate. My perception, values, and attitudes about the Vietnam War were being based on what I read in the local paper and saw on television. As the war came to an end and the truth about Vietnam started to emerge, the anger and mistrust I felt towards the American government was unbelievable. I felt as though I had been betrayed by the American press, whose integrity and objectivity I had thought was beyond reproach. ( Henry Rhodes - http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1983/4/83.04.03.x.html)

Vietnam – the first TV war

Henry Rhodes:One pressure that the major television stations had to deal with came from their affiliates. The Nixon administration used the affiliate stations to control what the major networks filmed in Vietnam better than any other U. S. administration. For the most part, affiliate stations were conservative, which reflected their viewing audiences’ values. Because the major networks were somewhat dependent on its affiliates to show its programming and advertisements, the networks usually heeded to the suggestions made by its affiliates. The affiliates didn’t want to see the U. S. portrayed in a negative way.Another problem that reporters had to deal with in reporting what happened in Vietnam was its sources of information. In most cases the facts fed to newsmen were fed to them by U. S. military personnel. If the reporters were critical of the U. S. in their articles, they could be assured of having a tough time getting information the next time. What one must keep in mind is the fact that one’s livelihood as a journalist depended on the stories and information one sent back to one’s home office back in the states. Thus, reporters tried not to alienate their sources of information.

Vietnam 2

1858-1884 - France invad and makes Vietnam a colony.October1930 - Ho Chi Minh helps found the Indochinese Communist Party.September 1940 - Japan invades Vietnam.May 1941 - Ho Chi Minh establishes the Viet Minh (League for the Independence of Vietnam).September 2, 1945 - Ho Chi Minh declares independence –the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. French with British help re-occupy Saigon and south and start attacking Viet Minh held areas.January 1950 - The Viet Minh receive military advisors and weapons from China.July 1950 - The United Statespledges $15 million worth of military aid to France to help them fight in Vietnam.May 7, 1954 - The French suffer a decisive defeat at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.July 21, 1954 - The Geneva Accords creates a cease-fire for the peaceful withdrawal of the French from Vietnam and temporary boundary between North and South Vietnam at the 17th parallel.October 26, 1955 - South Vietnam declares itself the Republic of Vietnam, with newly elected Ngo Dinh Diem as president.December 20, 1960 - The National Liberation Front (NLF), also called the Viet Cong, is established in South Vietnam.November 2, 1963 - South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem is executed during a coup.August 2 and 4, 1964 - North Vietnamese attack two U.S. destroyers sitting in international waters (the Gulf of Tonkin Incident).

Vietnam war

August 7, 1964 - In response to the Gulf of Tonkin Incident, the U.S. Congress passes the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution.March 2, 1965 - A sustained U.S. aerial bombing campaign of North Vietnam begins (Operation Rolling Thunder).March 8, 1965 - The first U.S. combat troops arrive in Vietnam.January 30, 1968 - The North Vietnamese join forces with the Viet Cong to launch the Tet Offensive.March 16, 1968 - U.S. soldiers kill hundreds of Vietnamese civilians in the town of Mai Lai.July 1968 - General William Westmoreland, who had been in charge of the U.S. troops in Vietnam, is replaced by General Creighton Abrams.December 1968 - U.S. troops in Vietnam reaches 540,000.July 1969 - President Nixon orders the first of many U.S. troop withdrawals from Vietnam.September 3, 1969 - Communist revolutionary leader Ho Chi Minh dies at age 79.November 13, 1969 - The American public learns of the Mai Lai massacre.April 30, 1970 - President Nixon announces that U.S. troops will attack enemy locations in Cambodia. This news sparks nationwide protests, especially on college campuses.June 13, 1971 - Portions of the Pentagon Papers are published in The New York Times.March 1972 - The North Vietnamese cross the demilitarized zone (DMZ) at the 17th parallel to attack South Vietnam in what became known as the Easter Offensive.January 27, 1973 - The Paris Peace Accords are signed that provide a cease-fire.March 29, 1973 - The last U.S. troops are withdrawn from Vietnam.March 1975 - North Vietnam launches a massive assault on South Vietnam.April 30, 1975 - South Vietnam surrenders to the communists.July 2, 1976 - Vietnam is unified as a communist country, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Vietnam 2

● Life magazine 27 June 1969 shows the war dead for that week – a turning point

● In June 1969, LIFE magazine published a feature that today, incredibly, remains as moving and, in some quarters, as controversial as it was when it sparked debate and intensified a nation’s soul-searching more than 40 years ago. On the cover, a young man’s face — the very model of middle-America’s “boy next door” — along with 11 stark words: “The Faces of the American Dead in Vietnam: One Week’s Toll.” Inside, across 10 funereal pages, LIFE published picture after picture and name after name of 242 young men killed halfway around the world — in the words of the official announcement of their deaths — “in connection with the conflict in Vietnam.”

● The public response was immediate, and visceral. Some readers expressed amazement, in light of the thousands of American deaths suffered in a war with no end in sight, that it took so long for LIFE to produce something as dramatic and pointed as “One Week’s Toll.” Others were outraged that the magazine was, as one reader saw it, “supporting the antiwar demonstrators who are traitors to this country.”

●Vietnam casualtiesNorth Vietnamese Army – Vietcong: 1,176,000North Vietnamese civilians – 65-182,000South Vietnamese Army (ARVN) – 220,357South Vietnamese civilians – 1,581,000Cambodian civilians – 200,000Laotian civilians – 100,000US forces – 58,590S Korean forces – 4,407Philippines forces – 1,000Thai forces – 1,351Australian - 520

1947 - British colonial rule over India ends. A largely Muslim state comprising East and West Pakistan is established, either side of India. The two provinces are separated from each other by more than 1,500 km of Indian territory.1949 - The Awami League is established to campaign for East Pakistan's autonomy from West Pakistan.1970 - The Awami League, under Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, wins an overwhelming election victory in East Pakistan. The government in West Pakistan refuses to recognise the results, leading to rioting. Cyclone hits East Pakistan - up to 500,000 people are killed.Independence. Mass displacement, killing of civilians and starvation.1971 - Sheikh Mujib arrested and taken to West Pakistan. In exile, Awami League leaders proclaim the independence of the province of East Pakistan on 26th March. The new country is called Bangladesh. Just under 10 million Bangladeshis flee to India as troops from West Pakistan are defeated with Indian assistance. 3 December of that year, Pakistani air force carries out pre-emptive but largey unsuccessful raid on Indian air force. India declares war and defeats Pakistan in the East by 16 december, while pushing back Pakistani offensives in West.1972 - Sheikh Mujib returns, becomes prime minister. He begins a programme of nationalising key industries in an attempt to improve living standards, but with little success.1974 - Severe floods devastate much of the grain crop, leading to an estimated 28,000 deaths. A national state of emergency is declared as political unrest grows.

Bangladesh timeline

What really happened - war of secession by people in the mainly Igbo-speaking area of south-east Nigeria. Oil producing area which felt, as many in the Delta still do, that they get little trickly down of wealth from the oil. Oil had only just started to flow in mid-60s and leader of the region, General Ojukwu demanded more autonomy and a bigger share of oil revenues. Northern-dominated government and military refused. Biafra seceded with some army units there becoming Biafran army. Most African countries (except, interestingly Tanzania) supported Nigeria and idea of national unity at all costs – France, Tanzania and one or two other countries backed Biafra. They may have helped with funding and sources of arms from international dealers. Britain and USSR armed Nigerian army. Ojukwu effectively taxed aid coming in to fund the war.Aid deliveries helped his war effort and may have prolonged the war – so did more die because of the aid effort? We simply do not know but it is a question worth asking.

Media, Propaganda and Biafra - distortions and misunderstandings – no real understanding or explanation despite wide coverage. Little reference to effects of colonial occupation, colonial formation of Nigeria and nature of handover with heavy northern dominance. Because the starving and malnourished were in Biafra and not the areas controlled by the Nigerian government, there was a tendency to see the Nigerians as the bad guys and Ojukwu as the good guy. MSF formed in 1970 when French doctors with Red Cross decided Red Cross was keeping quiet about government manipulation of aid and about atrocities. MSFD wanted to provide aid and be a “witness”.

Biafran War 1967-69

Reporting of Vietnam – self-censored, one-sided but then heavily criticized when journalists upped their game and gave more realistic accounts and suggested that victory was by no means certainMichael Buerk’s Korem report – amazing reportage, huge effect but no context or explanation – limited access for media.Rwanda-Zaire: Goma camps – gave totally wrong view of the situation and the needs. Poor journalism, little context.Kosovo – report of Racak massacre may have been entirely wrong. It sparked intervention and this was welcomed by many aid groups but the intervention went wrong and the alleged aggressors became the victims. How innocent was the KLA?

Reporting can be random and lack context or explanation