This module will explore the ways in which media coverage affects the conduct of war and other conflicts. We will begin by examining the paradoxical issue of the concept of a national media in the age of globalisation. We will move on to examine the relationships, both supportive and antagonistic, between governments, the military and journalists, drawing on case studies such as the Second World War, Vietnam, and the Second Persian Gulf War. We will conclude by examining the ways in which global journalism influences participants in conflicts, public opinion, and policy through the CNN Effect.

The essay will require demonstration of knowledge gained through the reading of relevant texts and other appropriate sources. It will also require that you write clearly and analytically about the issues raised in the essay question relevant to a case study of journalism and conflict. [LO 1,2,3,4,5]

There are three interdependent learning strategies associated with the module. The lecture programme (12 hours) will examine issues of relevance to the politics of journalism and conflict. The seminar programme (12 hours) will offer opportunity for clarification of issues raised in the lectures and for discussion of the relationship between journalism and conflict. Students will be required to articulate arguments orally in the seminars. Independent study (126 hours) will be based on directed reading aimed at preparation for lectures, seminars and seminar presentations, the seminar portfolio and the final essay.

Library - where you will find relevant textbooks, periodicals, and audio-visual materials.

Internet - where you will find numerous relevant websites.

S. Carruthers, The Media at War: Communication and Conflict in the Twentieth Century, Macmillan, 2000.
H. Evans, War Stories: Reporting in the Time of Conflict from the Crimea to Iraq, Bunker Hill Publishing, 2003.
D. Kisham Thussu and D. Freedman (eds.), War and the Media: Reporting Conflict 24/7, Sage, 2003.