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TALES of TERROR: Television News and the Construction of the Terrorist Threat TALES OF TERROR: Television News and the Construction of the Terrorist Threat Bethami A. Dobkin PRAEGER TALES TERROROF MEDIA AND SOCIETY SERIES J. Fred MacDonald, General Editor Who Shot the Sheriff? J. Fred MacDonald Australian Movies and the American Dream Glen Lewis Enduring Values: Women in Popular Culture June Sochen Entrepreneurs of Profit and Pride: From Black Appeal to Radio Soul Mark Newman TV Studies: Textual Analysis Gary Burns and Robert J. Thompson Richard Durham’s Destination Freedom J. Fred MacDonald Nervous Laughter: TV Situation Comedy and Liberal Democratic Ideology Darrell Y. Hamamoto Lyrical Protest: Black Music’s Struggle Against Discrimination Mary Ellison Propaganda: A Pluralistic Perspective Ted J. Smith, III Meanings of the Medium: Perspectives on the Art of Television Katherine Henderson and Anthony Mazzeo Rhythm and Resistance: Explorations in the Political Use of Popular Culture Ray Pratt Adventures on Prime Time: The Television Programs of Stephen J. Cannell Robert J. Thompson Making Television: Authorship and the Production Process Robert J. Thompson and Gary Burns TALES TERROROF Television News and the Construction of the Terrorist Threat Bethami A. Dobkin New York Westport, Connecticut London Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Dobkin, Bethami A. Tales of terror : television news and the construction of the terrorist threat / Bethami A. Dobkin. p. cm.—(Media and society series) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0–275–93981–2 (alk. paper) 1. Television broadcasting of news—Political aspects—United States. 2. Terrorism in the news—Political aspects—United States. 3. Press and politics—United States—20th century. 4. Journalism— United States—Objectivity—20th century. I. Title. II. Series. PN4784.T4D6 1992 302.23'45—dc20 91–28772 British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data is available. Copyright © 1992 by Bethami A. Dobkin All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, by any process or technique, without the express written consent of the publisher. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 91–28772 ISBN: 0–275–93981–2 First published in 1992 Praeger Publishers, 88 Post Road West, Westport, CT. 06881 An imprint of Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc. Printed in the United States of America The paper used in this book complies with the Permanent Paper Standard issued by the National Information Standards Organization (Z39.48–1984). P In order to keep this title in print and available to the academic community, this edition was produced using digital reprint technology in a relatively short print run. This would not have been attainable using traditional methods. Although the cover has been changed from its original appearance, the text remains the same and all materials and methods used still conform to the highest book-making standards. For my parents Contents Preface ix 1 Introduction: Television, Terrorism, and Public Reality 1 2 The Television Terrorist 11 The Antecedents to Modern Terrorism 12 Terrorism in the 1980s 14 Terrorism and Media Interdependence: Contagion Theory 18 Television Coverage and Public Perception 21 Conclusion 25 3 The Interpretation of Television News 27 Semiotic Approaches to News 29 The Structure of News Stories 30 News and the Creation of Crisis 32 The Media Role in Defining Terrorism 33 Audience Interpretations of Dramatic Narratives 36 Conclusion 37 4 What’s in a Name? “Terrorism” as Ideograph 39 Terrorism 40 The American Ideograph 50 Conclusion 53 5 Paper Tigers and Video Postcards: Narrative Framing in Network News 55 “Fixing” Terrorism 57 viii • Contents Mobilized Emotions and the Video Postcard 68 Building Contexts and Suggesting Responses 73 Conclusion 80 6 Official Discourse in the “Age of the Terrorist” 83 Ideographic Resonance in Official Discourse 85 Counterdefinitions of Terrorism 87 Dramatic Facts 89 Creating and Combating Conspiracy 94 Conclusion 100 7 Conclusions: Political Violence in a Video Age 103 Limitations 105 Implications: News and Foreign Policy 107 From Crisis to Chaos: The Politics of Perpetual War 111 Bibliography 115 Index 127 Preface As I watched the television accounts of the recent Persian Gulf War, I was mesmerized by the news stories and video images that danced on my screen. I read daily newspapers and weekly magazines, I listened to extensive radio coverage and academic debates, and I tried to consume every source of mediated information within my reach. As an educator, I introduced discussions about the conflict in my classes and spoke at public lectures and conferences about the relationship between television news and foreign policy. But few of these activities helped to quell the unease that had grown as I watched the networks struggle to provide live, dramatic coverage that would please most of their viewers, most of the time. We did not fight any officially declared wars in the 1980s, but we did fight a war against terrorism. Terrorists became this country’s archenemies, and the “scourge of terrorism” is still used as an instant justification for foreign policy gestures, funding for special programs, covert operations, and military intervention. As a public, we support these actions in the face of an enemy we do not understand and rarely see—except on television. Television serves as the primary source of information about foreign affairs for most Americans, a situation that has prompted much research and concern. This book is my attempt to assess those concerns in the context of television news coverage of terrorism. Some of the findings may sound familiar, but others may cause readers to see the performance of television news (and incumbent administra- tions), particularly during times of foreign conflict, in a different light. This book is not meant as an indictment of television, or even as a lengthy criticism of the American Broadcasting Corporation, the network that served as the focus for this study. It points instead to limitations of television journalism as currently practiced and the implications of that practice for our assessment of U.S. x • Preface foreign policy. Additionally, it is not an apology for terrorists or an implicit plea for leniency when dealing with them. Rather, this study examines the limits of the ways we come to understand the terrorist threat and our responses to it. And it is only a beginning. Every beginning involves the synthesis of many voices. The ample bibliography provided here gives an indication of the thought that informed this book. But at a more substantial level, that of daily experience, several people lent their support and encouragement and deserve to be mentioned here. I have dedicated this book to my parents for their unwavering enthusiasm and affection. David Sullivan deserves more gratitude than I can express here for his patience, understanding, and critical insight. Jane Blankenship has continued to offer words of wisdom about this project and others. Any detailed analysis of violent, terrifying, images and actions strains not just the researcher but also those around her. Thanks are due to Eileen McNutt, Amy Loomis, Daniel Sheehan, Fred MacDonald, the Department of Communication Studies at the University of San Diego (Cathy Joseph, Carole Logan, Roger Pace, Linda Perry, Larry Williamson), and my students. Perhaps the most inspiration has come from my family, for they have cultivated my belief that the kind of work undertaken here is not only worthwhile, it is an integral part of the struggle to make the world a better place. This book is only a small step in that direction. In that spirit, I hope that the insights offered here help to alleviate the suffering of all victims of political violence, at home and abroad. 1 Introduction: Television, Terrorism, and Public Reality On April 15, 1986, 33 U.S. Air Force and Navy fighter-bombers launched a retaliatory air raid on Libya, dropping 227-kilogram and one-ton bombs on targets in Tripoli and Benghazi. Years of frustration with highly publicized and sensational terrorist acts had led the United States to send a military message to a perceived sponsor of terrorism, Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi. The number of casualties resulting from the strike was not immediately reported, but shortly after the bombing Libyan Staff Major Abdul Salaam Jalloud reported that 37 people had been killed. Thirty-six of those people were civilians. An additional 93 people were injured. American support for the action was overwhelming. Americans wanted swift and strong military retaliation after having been plagued for a decade with horrifying acts of terrorism aimed at U.S. citizens. Opinion polls reflected this public senti- ment; when the United States bombed Libya, 71 percent of the American public supported the air raid. Paradoxically, though, less than a third of those polled believed the bombing would result in fewer incidents of international terrorism. In fact, over half of those polled thought the retaliatory bombing would either have no effect (23 percent) or would increase the amount of terrorism (39 percent) (Falk, 1986). These responses expressed the humiliation created by terrorism and the anger of citizens in a “nation held hostage.” The American public did not want a solution to international terrorism; they wanted retribution. Public support for military responses to terrorism has continued. In October 1990, prior to the first U.S. air raids against Iraq, Americans ranked terrorist actions among the strongest reasons for support of immediate military action in the Persian Gulf. Of those polled, 67 percent favored military involvement “if terrorists loyal to Iraq kill Americans anywhere,” whereas only 43 percent supported such action “if Iraq refuses to withdraw from Kuwait” (Yang, 1990). 2 • Tales of Terror Public frustration with terrorism has grown since November 1979, when Iranians took 66 hostages at the U.S. embassy in Tehran. On January 20, 1981, as the hostages were released, President Ronald Reagan was simultaneously sworn into office. From the time of Reagan’s 1981 inaugural address, when he unveiled counterterrorism as the cornerstone of his foreign policy, to the time of the 1986 air raid against Libya, the problem of terrorism escalated to the level of crisis.
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