I.D.A.! News Notes
i. d. a.! news notes Published by the United States Committee of the International Defense and Aid Fund for Southern Africa p.D. Box 17, Cambridge, MA 02138 August 1988, Issue No. 36 Telephone (617) 491-8343 Editors here in the United States have decidedfor the most part that Hiding the Story South Africa isn't a hot story these days. It doesn't make the front pages as often. The producers ofTV news shows have demonstrated an even On July 28, 1988, Lee Lescaze, the deputy foreign news editor of the Wall Street more acute drop-off of interest than newspaper editors, and TV, of Journal, spoke at Harvard University's Center for International Affairs on the topic "Trying course, is the major battleground. South African government officials, to Hide the Story: Media Coverage ofSouth Africa:' We thank the Center for providing us like US Presidential campaign managers, know that they can win the with atranscript ofthe talk. Although nothing that Mr. Lescaze says is startlingly new, we war ifthey win iton TV. President Reagan's handlers always used to say feel that the source of these remarks is significant, and since space prohibits our printing more than a few brief excerpts, we will try to print more in our next newsletter. they played to win on TV and were happy with a draw in the newspapers. What has TV done since the various media restrictions What distinguishes South Africa from other countries practicing were announced in three bites beginning December '85, then June '86 extensive media controls is that, unlike the others, South Africa portrays and December '86? Basically it has stopped airing the stories that the itself as a modern democratic nation.
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