What Katie Couric Should Be Reporting From Iraq

Posted by Lucinda Marshall at 12:00 PM on September 3, 2007.

This post written by Lucinda Marshall, originally appeared on the Feminist Peace Network

Given the number of journalists that have been killed in Iraq, I have no idea what motivates American journalists to continue to don flak jackets for the purposes of 'reporting' whatever it is that the Pentagon wants them to report. But kudos to CBS's Katie Couric for having the courage to point out that that was exactly what she was doing.

In an interview on Face the Nation she duly praises the marketplace that the military took her to visit,

"Well, I was surprised, you know, after I went to eastern Baghdad, I was taken to the Allawi Market, which is near Haifa Street, which was the scene of that very bloody gun battle back in January. And, you know, this market seemed to be thriving, and, uh, there were a lot of people out and about, a lot of family-owned businesses and vegetable stalls. And so you do see signs of life that seem to be normal."

Presumably the same one that Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) praised for looking like a marketplace in Indiana. The staged nature of the obligatory marketplace photo op bears an eery resemblance to the Nazi's model concentration camps of WWII. But then Couric qualifies her remarks,

"Of course, that's what the U.S. military wants me to see. So you have to keep that in mind, as well. But, there, I think, there definitely are areas where the situation is improving. But everyone agrees, Bob, that if these people, the people of Iraq, do not get basic services like electricity, like running water, it will be impossible to win their hearts and minds and have them fully support the national unity government or anything that's going on here."

It should be noted that $6 billion dollars later, the rebuilding of Iraq's energy sector still needs $50 billion more to once again be functional. One wonders if before the Bush Administration bombed the country to smithereens they ever took a moment to calculate the cost of rebuilding what they had destroyed. But I digress, here is my fantasy:

Wouldn't it be wonderful if Couric insisted on reporting the news. What if she really delved into the worsening refugee crisis that is occurring as Iraqis flee the country? What if she took the opportunity to look at the specific ways in which war impacts women and children? What if she talked about PTSD among Iraqi children or the horrendous rates of malnutrition? What if she talked to a pregnant woman who is scared that she won't be able to get to a hospital if she goes into labor at night when ambulances are afraid to transport patients because of the violence? What if she talked to women who are being forced to turn to prostitution in order to feed their families. No doubt she will spend lots of time covering President Bush's surprise visit to Iraq but will she mention new reports that the Pentagon has a plan to bomb Iran?

Like I said, it's only a fantasy...

Tagged as: media, iraq war, couric

Lucinda Marshall is a feminist artist, writer and activist. She is the Founder of the Feminist Peace Network. Her work has been published in numerous publications in the U.S. and abroad including, Counterpunch and Dissident Voice.