Second Front: Censorship and Propaganda in the 1991 Gulf War, Updated with a New Preface [Paperback]

John R. MacArthur (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 26, 2004 | ISBN-10: 0520242319 | ISBN-13: 978-0520242319 | Edition: 1

Now updated with a new preface that examines the current conflict in Iraq, this brilliant work of investigative reporting reveals the government's assault on the constitutional freedoms of the American media during Operation Desert Storm. John R. MacArthur's engaging and provocative account is as essential and alarming today as when the first paperback edition was published ten years ago.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Nothing less than an indictment of the American news media for dereliction of duty under fire." -- New York Newsday

"[A] devastating exposé . . . . [I. F.] Stone would have loved MacArthur's book." -- The Nation

Praise for the first edition:) -- Review

About the Author

John R. MacArthur is President and Publisher of Harper's Magazine and the author of The Selling of "Free Trade": NAFTA, Washington, and the Subversion of American Democracy (California, 2001). Ben H. Bagdikian is Dean Emeritus of the Graduate School of Journalism, University of California, Berkeley. He is the former assistant managing editor for national news at the Washington Post and is the author of a number of books.

Product Details

• Paperback: 318 pages
• Publisher: University of California Press; 1 edition (May 26, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520242319
• ISBN-13: 978-0520242319
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #419,076 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

JOHN R. MACARTHUR is the president and publisher of Harper's Magazine. An award-winning journalist, he has previously written for The New York Times, United Press International, The Chicago Sun-Times, and The Wall Street Journal. He is also the author of the acclaimed books You Can't Be President: The Outrageous Barriers to Democracy in America, The Selling of Free Trade: NAFTA, Washington, and the Subversion of American Democracy, and Second Front: Censorship and Propaganda in the Gulf War. He lives in New York City.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent treatment of undemocratic control of press., December 18, 2004

By 

Robert W. Albrecht "-BOB-" (Crozet, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Second Front: Censorship and Propaganda in the 1991 Gulf War, Updated with a New Preface (Paperback)

This book will open your eyes to the real threat that press censorship poses to our democratic nation. You will be amazed at how the the Bush administration was able to control the press and public attitudes towards the first gulf war. It is highly relavent today in light current policies in Iraq.

The premise is that the media needs to be proactive and report news, not just what the government wants us to hear.

For example: Did you know that fourty thousand (40,000!!) Iraqis were buried alive on the first day of the '91 Iraq war? Why wasn't this grizzly fact reported?

No wonder we are not welcomed with open arms by the people of Iraq. Propagandists believe their own lies if they tell them enough.

4.0 out of 5 stars He saw it coming, June 14, 2007

By 

James Levy (Levittown, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Second Front: Censorship and Propaganda in the 1991 Gulf War, Updated with a New Preface (Paperback)

This is a good a useful look at the way news and information were managed in the first Gulf War (1990-91). It skewers the media for being more interested in "access" than in reporting anything remotely like the truth about what was going on. Newspaper editors and TV executives are exposed as men and women looking for "product", stuff they can sell that will go down easy with a population they fear and distrust. Like in 2003, they want a simple story line with a designated "good guy" and a designated "bad guy" and no history or context to confuse the narrative. This book should have been read and absorbed by the media, and would have been if they were interested in performing the criitcal watgchdog role of truth-tellers. Most of them, however, are more interested in not rocking the boat and being stenographers to power.