"This book has presented a critical, historically grounded analysis of the role of the war correspondent. It has highlighted the risks, the problems and the failures that have defined the role but it has also given credit where that is due and acknowledged the inspirational example of correspondents
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such as William Howard Russell, Morgan Philips Price, Martha Gellhorn, Wilfred Burchett, John Pilger and Robert Fisk. Their work seems to bear testament to the ideal beloved of all journalists and writers, of ‘telling truth to power’. But as Arundhati Roy has argued, ‘Power owns the truth [and] knows the truth just as well if not better than the powerless know the truth’ (2004, page 68). In view of everything that has gone before in this book, I think she is right. Telling truth to power does not change or lessen the risks and dangers that accompany the journalist in the war zone. And as we have seen, the risks are not equal; the level of special training, protection and institutional support journalists receive depends on the size and wealth of their media employer." (Conclusion, page 214)
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"The title indicates the scope of this excellent history of the war correspondent, including photographers, as Knightley traces him (and a few hers) from the beginning of this type of journalism in the Crimes in the 1850s to the war in Vietnam over a century later. In between he covers various wars,
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little and big, in various parts of the world. He describes not only the correspondents but also the political and ideological climate that produced and set the course of the particular war, and analyzes the media coverage. This is useful not only for research and reference, but also as history. In addition it makes fascinating reading, although some parts are true horror stories which can be hard to take. There are 12 pages giving numerous sources, a bibliography and an index. The 1982 edition omits two chapters in the 1975 edition on the Boer War and on Algeria." (Eleanor Blum, Frances G. Wilhoit: Mass media bibliography. 3rd ed. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1990 Nr. 235)
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