Sitting in the Union, trying to eat his lunch in peace, Brady Hendrix cannot help but feel weird about watching a war happening on the other side of the world.
“It’s definitely weird because we have all this live coverage of the war that we’ve never had before — it’s like those reality shows,” said Hendrix, a nursing freshman.
Hendrix does not think the live coverage is affecting the American troops in Iraq in a positive or negative way. But he said the coverage comes across as negative because he does not like reality shows.
In the same room sits Stephen Hensgens, a chemical engineering junior, who said he thinks coverage has been good but a little much.
“I don’t think they should show the soldiers’ reactions to the bombings or in the heat of combat,” he said.
Besides the 24-hour coverage of CNN and Fox News, it is hard to turn on a regular network TV station without being bombarded with breaking news updates about the Iraqi war.
The media have been busy the past week with covering the American troops and the war in Iraq.
Some students notice a difference in the coverage of this war compared to wars in the past, with mixed opinions and reasons for whether they like it or not.
Nicole Glaze, a graphic design sophomore, said she thinks the media coverage has been good throughout the ordeal.
She said if someone in the Iraqi government said something that was untrue, then the United States would have video coverage to prove them wrong.
Glaze said with all the technology, people can see what exactly has been happening so they can support the American troops.
“It’s neat to see what’s going on now,” Glaze said. “It’s not our word against theirs.”
Thu Pham, a graphic design freshman, said since typical civilians cannot be in Iraq, the live media coverage allows everyone to react to what is happening at that moment.
While there are people who like or dislike the coverage because of the technological immediacy, there are others who like or dislike the coverage because of the personal implications the coverage brings.
Shoney Byers, a kinesiology senior, said she does not think the media should show the war every day on every channel because of the effect repeated exposure has on people.
“We need a break from it so we’re not thinking about the people over there possibly losing their lives,” she said.
On the other hand, Jonathan Williams, a political science senior, said he thinks all the coverage is good because people should be aware of what is going on with their country, military and civilians.
“It may affect our lives or loved ones,” he said.
There are also students who like the coverage but wish there was more.
“I wish they showed more pictures of us bombing the hell out of Iraq,” said Chris Ross, a biochemistry sophomore.
But some people think the media coverage in Iraq has been biased.
“I think we’re not getting a complete picture,” said Jessica Eberhard, a biological sciences research associate. “Based on the fact that the coverage coming out of non-U.S.-based media have different stories — somewhere down the line biases have been made.”
Krista Keen, a studio arts and ceramics freshman, said she thinks the coverage is some kind of propaganda to make people become pro-war and pro-American.
Some students have their own opinions about specific media, like The Reveille.
Mallory Mayeux, a mass communication freshman, said she would like to see more war coverage in The Reveille and more coverage of the Iraqi civilians.
Chase May, a history freshman, said he thinks the Reveille should stick to campus issues like the Union renovations.
People like Eric Davis, a finance freshman, think the war coverage is giving the military benefits.
Davis said he thinks the war is starting to last a bit longer than the military expected, and he thinks the military likes the media attention because it wants funding.
Some students like Brad Bates, a geography freshman, are subtly opposing the war by paying little attention to it.
“I’m pretty much against it, so I haven’t been following it,” he said.