The Real Face of Iraq is Lost in American Media

BOSTON - “American media coverage of the Middle East is not making any progress” admits Kael Alford, a Nieman fellow and highly respected photojournalist at a presentation held Tuesday September 30 at the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs in Harvard University.

“There is simply no market for what we do. When I took the decision to go to Iraq in 2003, I was certain just by reviewing the press that Western media coverage of the conflict in general was very much one sided.

“I saw plenty of photographs of Saddam Hussein in leading magazines and newspapers, but little to nothing on the daily life of Iraqis affected by the conflict. I had to rely on my own resources to make the journey from Europe, and arrived in Iraq just before the air strikes began. For three weeks, I photographed the day to day misery and suffering of Iraqis caught up in the crisis.

“Even at the height of the conflict, very few pictures were published by Western media. In fact, I was contacted by CNN for photographs two years after I had taken them! Things are getting worse.

“Few Western journalists have Arabic language skills or real knowledge of the region they are covering. Americans are simply not interested in any more stories on Iraq Palestine or possibly the Middle East. Even if I wanted to take the risk and go back to Iraq, I simply couldn’t afford it on my own expense.

“Washington think tanks were described by an attendant as “Bush’s policy shops” geared towards providing the “intellectual cover for the administration’s failed foreign policy.”

“It is time for think tanks and policy makers in DC to open the floor to more authentic voices from the region, particularly given the limited coverage made by American media in general,” argued another participant.

“My pictures are not news in Washington," says Alford. “The Washington community knows very well the damage we caused to Iraqi civilians. It not as simple as, let’s get the troops out, and everything will be ok.

“We need to clear up the mess we helped to create. Tens of thousands of refugees were displaced during this crisis and they are now a real challenge for neighboring countries like Egypt Syria and Lebanon. Providing assistance to these refugees is a good starting point for the new administration. Western media needs to focus more on human rights concerns,” concluded Alford.