Guardian: Don't Mention the Dead

[kskiska]

When the body of US soldier Artimus Brassfield was flown to the military mortuary at Dover, Delaware, there were no TV pictures of a flag-covered coffin and hero's salute - the White House has banned media coverage at the base. But can Bush's efforts to hide the body bags quell growing public disquiet over the death toll in Iraq? Gary Younge reports

When the silver casket lid went down on Artimus Brassfield a reflexive, convulsive sob echoed through Ebenezer ministries. In the seconds it took for the coffin to be draped with the American flag, Pastor Seon Thompson reminded the congregation that this was a celebration of his life. By the time the drummer had given them the beat for "He's gone to be a soldier in the army of the lord," they had found their voice.

(snip)

Brassfield was buried with full honours, the purple heart and bronze star presented to his wife Andrea. In the distance, the bugle played. It was not clear whether it was just a man puffing his cheeks or really playing. Since last month the military has been using "ceremonial buglers" at some military funerals - a tape that can be inserted into the bugle and sounds like the real thing. "We've got 1,800 veterans dying each day, and only 500 buglers," said Lt Col Cynthia Colin, a defence department spokeswoman. "We needed to do something to fill the void."

(snip)

Bush writes to each family, but his friends say he was offended by what he regarded as Clinton's occasionally gushing public performances, which he felt turned private grief into political gain. The trouble for Bush is that the public liked Clinton for his ability to empathise. Bush's apparent reluctance to publicly identify with the dead is beginning to look like a desire to disassociate himself from the failure of the mission. When news of the downed Chinook came through on Sunday he stayed in his ranch and let defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld meet the press.

"The public wants the commander-in-chief to have proper perspective and keep his eye on the big picture and the ball," says Dan Bartlett, the White House communications director. "At the same time, they want their president to understand the hardship and sacrifice many Americans are enduring at a time of war. And we believe he is striking that balance."

Others disagree. They say the growing number of casualties is the ball, which is precisely why the Pentagon enforced the ban on coverage at Dover. "You can call it news control or information control of flat-out propaganda," says Christopher Simpson, a communications professor at Washington's American University. "Whatever you call it, this is the most extensive effort at spinning a war that the department of defence has ever undertaken in this country. Casualties are a very important media football in any war this is a qualitative change."

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http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1079709,00.html

[PATRICK]

1. may I mention

The porpaganda push has strict mindless rules. Clear Cahnnel on the day of the helicopter takedown LED with a long take on the Kobe bryant story and FOLLOWED with a brief report on the casualties. It was so appalling and over with so fast I bet it didn't even shock most listeners who rarely give the "news" a second thought. We are being conditioned for casualties by this matter of fact and grudging relegation.

Don't think they don't understand the difference between the relentless drumbeats of Vietnam dramatized coverage, the outscale shrill ritual during the day count of the Iran Hostage Crisis and the legless matter of fact controlled blurbs about iraq casulaties. Cumulatively all are bad for any administration, but the "muted" scenario makes it difficult to rouse the public to say the least. In the last scenario that leaves shouting room for incredible hype and complaints by pro-war triumphalists touting "successes". Balance madness against truth and people will try to opt for the most comforting.

[kclown]

2. This is why we need to keep the demonstrations coming n/t