GROUP WORK 1
MEDIA CONSTRUCTION: THE IRAQ WAR

You have to meet face to face for this exercise; write up your answers in Google Doc and invite me to join your document when it's completed. Please use my GMAIL account (to make the invitation easier): bettina.fabos@gmail.com
Discuss your impressions of the 10-year Iraq war, which formally ended Dec. 18, 2011. 


1. The war started in March, 2003. Reflect on your first impressions of the media coverage of the Iraq War when the "Shock and Awe" bombing started in 2003. You may need to do some research of early news accounts, as the war was being constructed by the news media. What images were predominant when the war began? Did this construction give you a positive or negative impression of the war?

2. What are some key moments you recollect during the Iraq War coverage over the past 10 years? List these moments, and plot them on a timeline (you may want to do a bit of research). How did these events shape your impressions of the Iraq war?

3. Think about the iconic images you may have of the Vietnam War: the Napalm girl, the national police chief executing a prisoner who was said to be a Viet Cong; the Kent State shootings. What corresponding images do we have of the War in Iraq? What kinds of images did not get shown over 10 years tha,t perhaps under different circumstances, we might have been able to see? (this is intentionaly vague). How was coverage of this war different from Vietnam? What arguments would you make for and against the way the media covered events?

NOTES ON PREPAREING THIS DOCUMENT:

  • spelling, punctuation, and grammar matter. One significant error and I'm handing the document back. PROOFREAD your document. You are ALL responsible for proofreading.
  • the document must have a singular voice. Make sure you all agree to what you're ALL saying (USE THE WORD "WE" TO SIGNIFY YOU'RE THINKING AS A GROUP, and if you have specific comments from individuals, as in "Sara thinks that...." then add your group members' name). Do not use the pronoun "I" at any time in this document.
  • do NOT divide questions up between you. You must ALL discuss and contribute to each question.