Can't Get Enough?!

This site gives an overview of the affects that TV had on the Vietnam War!
Enjoy!


Vietnam + TV = History


WHAT IF.........


Some people say, veterans of Vietnam included, that there are many similarities between the war in Iraq and the Vietnam war.  Is this true? Are we headed down the same path?

I'll let you decide....

USA Today - Vietnam vs. Iraq

FOX News - Vietnam vs. Iraq

Vietnam from Start to Finish

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The Vietnam War was one for the record books.  It was not only the first televised was but also known as the least successful foreign was for America.  Home viewers were reminded daily of the carnage and blood shed over seas.  The fueled them to protest the war and support bringing the troops home.  During Truman's presidency America became involved in the was.  It wasn't until 1965 did America make an offensive attack on Vietnam. Much to our troops disadvantage the Vietnamese soldiers were more aware of their surroundings and ability to blend into the native vegetation; this practice is known as Guerilla Warfare.  NBC, ABC, and CBS, pulled in over 35 million viewers combined.  After the war, "voluntary guidelines" were put in place to clarify what things were off limits to reporters, and the media, until their official release.  Due to technological advances footage of the front line could be shot and sent home to be aired on the daily news.  This accessibility to the truths of the war made it very real to the people at home in front of their TV sets.  The transition to color images highlighted the gore, and more specifically blood, of the wounded. 

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Many correspondents didn't strive for footage of just any casualties, they focused on the blood shed of American soldiers.  One of the most controversial stories of the Vietnam war was the zippo lighter story.  Essentially U.S. soldiers were filmed walking into a village, half heartily attempting to warn the peasants to evacuate (in English even though they clearly don't know the language) and then proceeding to light each hut on fire using simply a zippo lighter.  The lackadaisical approach the soldiers took horrified the audiences.  It created such a stir that many people called CBS, president Johnson included, to express their dislike of the footage. In late January, 1968, North Vietnam coordinated an offensive attack, called "the Tet Offensive", on over 100 sites in South Vietnam simultaneously.  The fighting that came about because of it lasted for 10 days after the initial attack.  The Tet Offensive was the first "superbattle" to be televised.  The effects of TV on the war were momentous.  By constantly relaying what was going on overseas, both negative and positive, they allowed for the audience to be well educated on the subject and therefore decide whether or not they support the war.  Pessimism began to become the general tone of the American citizens towards the war. For example, all evidence proved that the attack by  North Vietnam (Tet offensive) had failed but the Americans had already made up their minds that it was a loss for them.  Another controversial image was that of a South Vietnamese General shoot an untried prisoner in cold blood. 

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 This shocked viewers because South Vietnam was supposed to be on our side.  The audience was disgusted.  People's opinion of the war began to shift towards negativity and there is no doubt TV had a hand in it.  The conclusion was drawn that the Vietnam War was not going to be a win for the United States.  Walter Cronkite, a CBS news anchor, was the forerunner of the idea that the war would be lost.  He believed that it was his duty to report the complete truth to his viewers, no matter how grim it looked.  Shortly after Cronkite aired his special on his projected outcome of the war, president Johnson announced that, not only was he not running for reelection, but he was also decreasing American involvement in the war.  Seemingly to kick America when down Lieutenant Calley (of the U.S. Army) lead the My Lai massacre, after which he was convicted of mass murder.  As the war forged on protests began to increase. 

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  TV helped progress the efforts of protesters by bringing them into the spotlight.  One well known, and tragic, protest took place at Kent State University during which the National Guard opened fired on the crowd ultimately killing 4 students.  Just as TV propelled the war, it also helped to bring it to an end.  All the horror stories and gruesome images helped inform the U.S. citizens, ultimately allowing them to decide to fight to bring the troops home.  The media's loyalty is to the people, allowing them to live a free and self governing life.  The role TV played in the Vietnam War did exactly that.

How Far is TOO Far?

Reporters covering the Vietnam war sent home thousands upon thousands of images and video that shocked the American public. For instance the video of General Ngoc Loan of South Vietnam killing the untried prisoner was shown on the nightly news, but it had undergone some editing.  Rather than showing the part of the film where blood can be seen spewing from the victims head, the network decided to cut to black, I believe that this was in their better judgment.  Have the rules of what is appropriate to publish and what isn't changed over time?  More recently there was an incident in Boston where the moments before a young womens death were captured on camera and published on the front page of the paper.  Was this in the papers best taste?  Is it alright to show these photos, knowing that the woman died mere milliseconds after?  I think that photojournalism is a great tool for informing the audience but I think that there should be some ethics to them.

While watching television the other day I was shocked at some of the images I was witnessing on the screen.  Horrendous images of bodies hanging lifeless from the gallows, bodies dismembered and covered in blood stained sheets (some covering barely more than the victims face).  I thought for a moment that maybe I somehow had come across a premium channel that typically has less restrictions about the material they show, but much to my surprise I was watching National Geographic!  This channel is one of very few channels now a days that holds any educational value, doesn't one think that it would be best not to offend (and potentially traumatize) their younger viewers?  Do these images respect the subjects of the photos?  Would YOU want to see dead bodies in the newspaper while sipping your morning coffee or while flipping through the channels with your family at night?


I fully support the fourth estate, and the rights protected by the first amendment but I also think that there should be boundaries set to respect the dead and their family.

An Overview of The Vietnam War

Chapter 12 - The Vietnam War: Bringing the Battlefield into the American Living Room

• The Vietnam War was the first televised war and also became known as the least successful war in American history.
• Because TV brought home the terrifying images of the war, audiences began to think of the war as "senseless".

America's Longest War

• Involvement in the war began during Truman's presidency in the early 1950's.  The United States hoped to stop communist North Vietnam from following China's governmental example while also hoping to spread the democratic beliefs of Southern Vietnam.
• In 1964, northern Vietnamese boats attacked US patrol boats causing President Johnson to order a retaliation.
• Unfortunately for the U.S. soldiers the Vietnamese were well aware of their geography and able to easily blend in with the surrounding terrain.  This was known as Guerilla warfare, and although the American soldiers were better equipped, ths type of warfare is what gave the Vietnamese such a great advantage.
• Approximately more than 58,000 Americans died fighting while between 1 and 3 million Southeast Asians lost their lives.

The Most Powerful Medium in History

• ABC, NBS, and CBS were bringing in over 35 million viewers nightly.
• During the war, reporters over seas had no restrictions on what they were allowed to report.  This made the Vietnam war the first war without military censors, it was also the last war without censorship.  Eventually officials set guidelines that categorized 15 different topics that were not allowed to be reported on until they were officially announced in Saigon.
• Advances on technology brought the front line battles into the homes of millions of Americans every night.  The typically black and white images were changed into color, causing the images of blood to be even more vivid and grotesque.

Exposing the Horrors of War

• Audiences of the Vietnam War were most interested in seeing wounded American soldiers as opposed to those of Vietnamese.  "It's not a Vietnamese was; it's an American war in Asia.  And that's the only story the American audience is interested in."  This statement was delivered by the NBC vice president at the time. 
• NBC's vice president went as far to inform his correspondents focus strictly on sending home images of U.S. soldiers in action, and most "preferably" images of mortal combat.

A Zippo Lighter Ignites a Firestorm

• In the early years of the war the most controversial story was reported by Morley Safer from CBS.  Marines were shown burning an entire village hut by hut using merely a Zippo lighter.  Many people complained to the network claiming that this video footage makes the U.S. soldiers out to be completely heartless.
• President Johnson was one among the upset viewers who contacted the network in order to express his distaste towards the footage.

Tet Stuns a Nation

• The Tet offensive took place in late January 1968 and was initiated by the North Vietnamese.  This offensive consisted of attacks on 100 cities, military bases, and villages throughout South Vietnam.  The attacks ceased after several hours but the fighting in the south persisted for another 10 days.
• The Tet offensive was a huge thing for televised news, it was "America's first TV superbattle."  ABC, NBC, and CBS reported Tet as a victory for the Viet Cong even though the evidence showed that it clearly was not.

The Shot Felt Around the World

• NBC reporter Howard Tucker was filming in South Vietnam (our ally) when General Nguyen Ngoc Loan shot an untried prisoner at point blank range.  The camera man caught the entire act on film, beginning with the prisoner being presented to the General, all the way through to the prisoners body collapsing into a heap with blood spraying horribly from the wound on his head.  
• This footage began to change the American's view on the war.  TV was hugely impacting the change in the American attitude.

Exposing the War as Unwinnable

• Walter Cronkite really set a tone for the potential outcome of the war.  He shared his personal opinions and beliefs about the war on his news broadcasts.  He eventually stated that it was his belief that this would be the first war that America could not win.  President Johnson stated that if he had lost the support of Cronkite, then it was obvious that he had finally lost the war.
• Johnson announced his decision to withdraw troops from Vietnam as well as his decision to not run for reelection.
• The wars negative tone continued to grow.  The My Lai massacre, after which U.S. Lieutenant William Calley was convicted of mass murder, was one eye opener presented by Seymour Hersh.  Another was when newspapers began reporting on secret government documents that showed the military's political motivations rather than a humanitarian motivation.

Antiwar Protesters Fight for the Spotlight

• As the war escalated so did the protesters.  Television helped progress the protesters towards a larger spotlight.  Protesters were originally viewed as traitors and frowned upon, but over time, as the war began to end, it became clear that although protesters did not support the war did not mean they supported the enemy.
• When President Nixon disregarded his promise to not expand the war by sending troops into Cambodia, protesters were in an uproar.  On Kent State University campus the National Guard opened fire on student protesters, ultimately killing  four.  This caused some 1.5 million students to become enraged and continue their protesting greater than ever.

Television News Helps End a War

• The United States was losing the Vietnam war no matter what the politicians were saying.  TV coverage of the war helped bring an end to the war.  It was believed that if the American's could send their children to war, then they should also be prepared to witness the destruction and carnage that war creates.

The power of photojournalism

Many reporters over seas during the Vietnam war sent home vivid and graphic images of not only blood and gore, but of horror and fear as well.


The Vietnam War

Because this war was also the longest fought war, it was not as though there was only one or two news specials on it, but there were images, being seen by American's EVERYDAY.

The Vietnam War - How TV Shaped the War

The Vietnam War was the first televised war in American history.  Because of technological advances in TV equipment, grotesque and in color images were being sent back to the states on a daily basis.  The war was no longer something that the country simply read about, but it was something they experienced. The images were so disturbing to the viewers that the country began to have a change of heart, deciding that the war was senseless and unnecessary; the general public quickly went from supporting the war to protesting it.

This famous image became embedded into the minds of the American people.  A Southern Vietnamese officer (one who was fighting on our side) shot an untried prisoner at point blank.  American's were horrified by the actions being taken over seas.  Many believe that by bringing the images of the war to the public's attention is what helped put an end to the war when it did.

Muckraking Now-a-days

There are some, though not many, magazines today that still practice mukraking to an extent.  For example, The New Yorker magazine uses cartoons to help drive the point home to it's readers.  Though not all of the cartoons delve deep into the political under belly of society, some (as seen above) are more humorous and lighthearted.