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Reporting America at War: An Oral History

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Reporters who have covered wars from World War II up to the present war with Iraq and everything in between provide us with their views of the freedom or lack of same they have had in carrying out their journalistic duties. Walter Cronkite, Andy Rooney, David Halberstam, Morley Safer, Peter Arnett, Christiane Amanpour, among others give us their insight into the freedom or lack of freedom they have had in seeing to it the public's freedom to know what is taking place in the war zone. The bottom line regarding the book is "the First Amendment was written to protect the press not for its own good, but for the good of the public,"...and "if we choose not to care about the world until the world comes crashing through our door, then we will not get it. Not at all, or only when it's too late." The attacks on 9-11 should emphasize to Americans the importance of knowing what is going on beyond the shores of the United States. Since Vietnam Americans have distrusted the government's view of how wars are progressing, and should insist that reporters have access to provide them with information to keep them informed. The individuals in the book are giants in their trade, and their opinions are as relevent today as they always have been.