Perception or Deception? Is there a difference between Baudrillard’s Virutality And Intentional Abuse of Power?

Betrayals of Trust L.A. Times dismissed photojournalist Brian Walski after he composited two photos and altered them to get this composition for March 31, 2003

Were Walski’s award-winning photos doctored prior to that Were Walski’s award-winning photos doctored prior to that? The case led to speculation.

Poetic License Listen My Children and you shall hear . . . Of the midnight ride of William Dawes (Paul Revere was captured that night, but his name rhymed in Longfellow’s poem)

Gonzo Journalism Subjectivity as a way to get at the most important “truths.” EXAMPLE: Hunter S. Thompson Creative non-fiction takes creative license

Avoiding Deceptive Practices Sometimes, journalists themselves can be deceived, as in Guatemala 1954 Even when journalists work hard to be fair and accurate, they can be deceived themselves and report false information to the American public as a consequence. This was the case in 1954 when journalists reported an apparent uprising of Guatemalans attempting to overthrow their own democratically elected government. In reality, according to documents declassified in 1997, the CIA was behind the coup, staging it like a play in order to depose the new President Arbenz and make it look as if it were the result of a peasant uprising. Behind the CIA’s actions was the United Fruit Company, an American business that dominated the Guatemalan economy and stood to lose banana profits under the democratically elected Arbenz. United Fruit, which sold Chiquita Bananas and other fruits, had benefited from the previous brutal dictatorship of General Jorge Ubico, and was not pleased with Arbenz’ plan for United Fruit to sell back some of its land to peasants, at the worth that it cited for its taxes. Lobbyists for United Fruit claimed that the Guatemalan government was communist and should be overthrown. General _______, who directed the CIA operations in Guatemala, recalls that farmers were recruited like actors in a drama, sounds of planes were piped through loud speakers on rooftops to give an authentic feel to the struggle, and reporters came on junkets (complements of United Fruit) to cover the story of the supposed Guatemalan uprising. Though New York Times reporter Sydney Gruson saw through the deception and attempted to report the real story, he was fired from his job when the Times was told he was compromising national security. After President Arbenz was deposed, the United Fruit Company’s profits were secured, but tens of thousands of Guatemalans were murdered in the aftermath, and the democracy that had been established was undermined. The Guatemala case and others like it have raised many questions about the role of journalists. Given the fact that the American government can cite “national security” at any time, to cloak both legitimate and corrupt activities, to what degree should journalists be able to seek and report their findings about government operations, and to what degree should we trust our government to conduct matters of national security without public accountability and democratic input?

News Case Studies: Comparing Perspectives

Questions?