Le 1 Anna Le Period Humanities 11 4/30/13 In The Medias Hand "Television brought the brutality of war into the comfort

t of the living room. Vietnam was lost in the living rooms of America--not on the battlefields of Vietnam. (Marshall McLuhan, 1975) Television is the window to the world; it helped its audience to see what the world was like outside their living room. Television also showed the audience the cruelty and vicious uncensored footage of the Vietnam War. Without any censorship or political control, the media allowed the world to know all of Vietnams tragedies. The media coverage on the Vietnam War was negative and caused unfavorable criticism from the public because of the medias decision to show true footage behind the Vietnam War, and by popular demand from the public the war had to end. The media were fairly supportive of the Vietnam War when the U.S. became involved in fighting against communist North Vietnam. Early on in the Vietnam War, many of the
correspondents supported the war effort. (voices.yahoo.com). Television broadcasters tried to

support the war, and maintain a panic-free audience. However, when reporters traveled to Vietnam, they uncovered the catalytic realities of war. The reporters and photographers did not have as much enthusiasm as they had when they were first went to Vietnam; they were finding sad stories and painful pictures. (voices.yahoo.com). Reporters began to show skepticism of the government's presence and their intentions. The medias skepticism only fueled their desire to reveal what was happening. The media decided to show to America what was truly happening

Le 2 on the battlegrounds and the politics involved in the war. Americans began to see the high casualties and the many failed battles being reported in the media, particularly The Pentagon Papers in the New York Times. The Pentagon Papers, revealed by journalists, contained numbers from the war that included far higher rates of American casualties and far less successful battles than the officially released government statistics had indicated. The government was misleading the public, and so the people began to doubt the government and the war effort. (Labor Law Talk) The Tet Offensive was the most controversial event that happened in 1968, and it remains the reason why people started to go against the Vietnam War during the late 60s and early 70s. The Tet Offensive was a disastrous military failure, and the media fully exposed the Tet Offensive on television. The entire war including soldiers commentary was displayed on screen for people at home to see. Everyone in America became deeply affected by the images of violence and insanity of the war. One of the most memorable scenes of the war was a South Vietnamese officer firing a pistol into the temple of a smaller man who has his hands tied behind his back. In just one reel of tape the world was able to see a Vietcong being punished by death, over and over again. (trincoll.edu) People started to rebel against the Vietnam War and the publics opinion of the war greatly shifted since the Tet Offensive. According to historical research, 48% of people approved of President Johnsons way of handling the situation in Vietnam and 60% of people classified themselves as hawks. Only after the Tet Offensive did statistics change, 36% of people approved of President Johnsons method of war, and 41% approved of the war. (digitalhistory.uh.edu) The people continued to rebel against the Vietnam War, and the media coverage on the Vietnam War continued to evoke the publics opinion. The Kent State shooting was one of the

Le 3 many strikes against the war effort, but probably the most significant strike out of the entire rebellion against the war effort. The Kent State massacre was a strike between college students against President Nixons announcement about the Cambodian Incursion. Many unarmed students were fired at by guardsmen, and ultimately faced death and severe wounds. Across the nation, the peoples opinion of the war became greatly affected by the Kent State massacre. A significant amount of people reacted strongly against the war after the shooting. People were growing tiresome of the gruesome news the media had to offer and wanted the war to end immediately. The media during the time strongly affected the nation, particularly their opinion against the war. Despite the medias effort to keep a healthy outlook on the war, they had no choice but to display the horrific nature of the conflict. The medias coverage on the war ultimately helped ended the war in Vietnam by reaching to its audience and capturing their heart with the tribulation the people of the country and the soldiers had dealt with. The media had a role and it was to show the America what the world truly was like outside its perimeters.

Work Cited The Media: Vietnam War. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2013.

Le 4 <http://www.vietnamwar.net/media.htm>. How Media Coverage of the Vietnam War Changed America, Journalism. yahoo.com, 25 Nov. 2007. Web. 30 Apr. 2013. <http://voices.yahoo.com/ how-media-coverage-vietnam-war-changed-america-667863.html?cat=37>. LaborLawTalk: Vietnam War, Encyclopedia. LaborLawTalk.com. 3 December 2005. Media's role during the Vietnam-Era. trincoll.edu, 10 may 2000. Web. 30 Apr. 2013. <http://www.trincoll.edu/classes/hist300/media.htm>. Digital History. College of Education, 13 May 2001. Web. 30 Apr. 2013. <http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/learning_history/vietnam/ vietnam_pubopinion.cfm>.