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February 12, 2008

Journalist likens reporting in Iraq to covering Chinese government

Transcript Managing Editor

Journalists reporting on the war in Iraq have very little freedom to really cover the news as security concerns and lack of access keep them inside bunker-like bureaus or embedded with military units, a longtime journalist and former journalism dean told an OU audience Tuesday.

Orville Schell, now director of the Asia Society Center on U.S.-China Relations, likened the situation in Iraq to journalists trying to report openly on the Chinese government. Independent reporting causes problems, Schell told the student audience.

The former New York Times writer and author of 14 books said the press' watchdog role, as envisioned by our nation's founding fathers, has diminished. He described a trip to Baghdad to visit the Times' bureau, complete with its 50-person army of security guards.

"You sit in this compound. You can't go out... It's very, very dangerous there. When you can go out you can only go to the Green Zone.

"It was like living in a kind of 'Bladerunner' like situation. You didn't dare spend very long out there," he said.

He said the Iraq war's stated goal to take out a dictator and replace him with a democratically elected government was a noble one but that it had now become a unprecedenteed disaster with few worthwhile exit strategies.

"It's not a very pretty picture," he said.

Schell said there were "haunting echoes" of the war in Vietnam and press-government relations there. Reporters like The Times' David Halberstam were singled out by the president.

While in China in the 1970s, he recalls asking tough questions and facing the consequences.

"I would be insufficiently friendly and would be frozen out for simply asking questions," he said.

Schell said many journalists had their patriotism questioned when raising doubts about the government's rationale for going to war.

"Most of us who are journalists are very patriotic. We don't want to be at odds with anybody, but our jobs often put us at odds with the government."

He urged the students to "push beyond the glass walls" and get in the faces of government officials to bring the real news home to their readers and listeners.

In China, Schell said, the role of the press is very different and some journalists there are only now learning to question their government.

"In China, the role of the press is as a megaphone for the government and the party," he said.

He said Chinese media now have two masters: The Communist party and the marketplace, growing with new voices and technology.

In response to a student's question, Schell said the Summer Olympics will be a real test for China. An estimated 12,000 foreign journalists are expected to come there and have been promised open access to the country.

Schell said protesters also are planning to use the forum as a stage. He said it could set China's progress back many years if the government tries to stifle the protesters.

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