Today, most agree that the 2003 invasion of Iraq and the war that followed was a major misstep. But in the leadup to the invasion and early months of the conflict, a majority of Americans, as well as our media and political leaders, stood in favor. What happened?
Guest Babak Bahador is a scholar who studies the relationship between peace, conflict, and the media – kind of like the academic version of this podcast. He teaches at George Washington University, where he directs the Media and Peacebuilding Project, and he founded the Peace News Network in 2015.
Babak has analyzed American news coverage of armed conflicts from World War II through the 2003 Iraq War, and he’s noticed a pattern in the way politics, public opinion, and the media inform each other over the course of each war.
In this wide-ranging conversation, Babak and host Jamil Simon begin by discussing coverage of the Vietnam War and the 2003 Iraq War. They also highlight the positive role of the media in Northern Ireland’s Good Friday peace agreement; touch on Ukraine, and reflect on how journalists can attract more attention to reconciliation and rebuilding efforts.
LEARN MORE
Read Babak Bahador’s research and analysis
Mapping the Enemy Image through Different Conflict Stages, University of Canterbury, 2011
Did pictures in the news media just change U.S. policy in Syria? Washington Post, 2017
Peacenews.com
Listen
Peace Journalism: at least don't make matters worse, our 2022 episode on Peace Journalism and the importance of language with Steve Youngblood
Slow Burn: The Road to the Iraq War, a podcast from Slate that explores the people and ideas that propelled the country into the Iraq war, and the institutions that failed to stop it
Making Peace Visible is a project of War Stories Peace Stories. Our mission is to bring journalists and peacebuilders together to re-imagine the way the news media covers peace and conflict, and to facilitate expanded coverage of global peace and reconciliation efforts. Join the conversation on Twitter: @warstoriespeace
Making Peace Visible is hosted by Jamil Simon, and produced by Andrea Muraskin, with hello from Faith McClure. Music in this episode is by Blue Dot Sessions, Xylo-Ziko, and SF Music.
HOW TO RATE AND/OR REVIEW MAKING PEACE VISIBLE
In Apple Podcasts on iPhone
- Tap on the show name (Making Peace Visible) to navigate to the main podcast page
- Scroll down to the "Ratings and Reviews" section
- To leave a rating only, tap on the stars
- To leave a review, tap "Write a Review"
In Spotify
(Note: Spotify ratings are currently only available on mobile.)
- Tap on the show name (Making Peace Visible) to navigate to the main podcast page
- Tap on the star icon under the podcast description to rate the show
In Podcast Addict
(Note: you may need to sign in before leaving a review.)
From the episode page: On the top left above the show description, click "Post review."
From the main podcast page
- Tap "Reviews" on the top left.
- On the Reviews page, tap the icon of a pen and paper in the top right corner of the screen.
Making Peace Visible is a project of War Stories Peace Stories. Our mission is to bring journalists and peacebuilders together to re-imagine the way the news media covers peace and conflict, and to facilitate expanded coverage of global peace and reconciliation efforts. Join the conversation on Twitter: @warstoriespeace.
Making Peace Visible is hosted by Jamil Simon, and produced by Andrea Muraskin, with help from Faith McClure. Music in this episode is by Blue Dot Sessions, Xylo-Ziko, and SF Music.
ABOUT THE SHOW
Making Peace Visible is a project of War Stories Peace Stories. Making Peace Visible is hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin, with help from Faith McClure. Learn more at warstoriespeacestories.org.
We want to learn more about our listeners. Take this 3-minute survey to help us improve the show!
Support this podcast and the War Stories Peace Stories project
