The Grand Rapids Institute for Information Democracy (GRIID) has issued a media alert on Iraq War coverage as part of a national day of action targeting the media’s role in the Iraq War. According to numerous studies of the local media conducted by GRIID, the local media’s coverage continues to provide inadequate coverage of what has happened in Iraq. In light of this coverage, GRIID is asking people to contact local media outlets to make the following demands:
- The coverage remains one-sided — “All about us” — and excludes anti-war voices from citizens and anti-war groups all over the world.
- We need to hear more from the Iraqi people!
- Reports That Question Official Claims - We need more aggressive reporting, not just official stenography – just repeating official sources.
- Independent Assessments of Political Developments - Let’s hear from international experts, not just pro-war pundits.
- Stop Sanitizing the war – show the American people what the consequences of war really are.
- Follow-up on Corruption Investigations - There have been reports on billion-dollar financial scandals to defense contractors, but little follow-up. How is our tax money being squandered? Tell us.
GRIID's studies on the local media's coverage of the war include:
- Searching for the Smoking Gun 2003
- Reporting Official Positions 2004
- Violence, Soldier Deaths and Omissions 2005
- PDF of data for 2006
For contact information for the local news outlets, view the media alert.
