Abstract

The difference between news coverage during Operation Iraqi Freedom and recent conflicts has been the focus of much media attention. In this paper, symbolic convergence, social penetration, social exchange, and uncertainty reduction theories help support the prediction that the utilization of embedded reporters produces an increased in positive coverage of the U.S. military. Print news coverage published before and after the initiation of ground operations in the 1991 Gulf War, 1999 Kosovo Conflict and 2003 Operation Iraqi Freedom was analyzed to determine how coverage by embedded reporters differed from that of unilateral and staff compilation coverage. The results indicate that embedded coverage in Operation Iraqi Freedom was decidedly more positive then unilateral or staff compilation coverage, and that coverage of Operation Iraqi Freedom was more positive than coverage of the 1991 Gulf War or the 1999 Kosovo Conflict. Additionally, reporters who quoted military service members in the area of operations wrote stories that were more positive than those who quoted a government spokesperson or contained a combination of military and government representatives.