Media at War

The media should only be censored to protect troops at war. Politicians should not use their power over the media to enhance their popularity. Because the first President Bush and his administration did not want the First Gulf War to be “another Vietnam,” they restricted the press’s access to information to the press (Greenberg 7). Although Americans have the right to freedom of speech, government makes many rules governing the media’s access to wars, and can control the press. Therefore, it is easy for the government to control the public’s views of a war.
Though its control of much of the information provided to the press, the government can mold the public’s perspective. Although, freedom of the press (and the broader freedom of speech) is in the First Amendment to the Constitution this right contracts during war because wartime situations often create challenges to normal press freedom (Lahav 1). Due to the dangers of war, people believe that “necessities ...