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THE AFTERMATH OF KATRINA: AN UPDATE OF MEDIA COVERAGE, INTERNATIONAL REACTIONS, AND PUBLIC DIPLOMACY
SEP 20, 2005 - 10:39PM PST
by Shawn Powers

Download this report [PDF] It has been over two weeks since Hurricane Katrina blasted through the Gulf States, and as Americans watch the tragedy play out, so has the rest of the world. This is part two of a report that surveys media coverage in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina that explores the media’s reactions and international impressions of American politics and culture. In an effort to highlight the diverse array of perspectives that have been expressed, this report draws attention both to traditional media sources, as well as to less prominent media outlets, including television coverage in Qatar and Internet news service in Saudi Arabia. This sample suggests that while much of the international coverage of Katrina started out like our own, the tone and direction of international coverage has gradually changed. Critical coverage, ranging from pointed criticisms of the administration’s climate policy to the perceived failure of the American social safety net, have become stronger, while some alternative media have even resorted to describing Katrina as an act of “divine redemption.” While certain criticisms have been publicly repudiated, exemplified by Prime Minister Blair’s disgust in the BBC’s “anti-US” coverage, the overall commentary indicates that some of the criticisms are becoming more spiteful of America. The following is a continued aggregation of key articles and commentary about Katrina and its aftermath. If you would like to post your reactions and ideas about her appointment, you can add your comments at the bottom of this page. Covering Katrina: How Media Control Faltered for a Moment (Ramzy Baroud, Mill Gazette [India], September 21, 2005) In the Iraq invasion, packaged by the Bush administration and promoted by major US news networks as Operation Iraqi Freedom, the government couldn’t take any chances at revealing the authentic motivation behind the war. It simply could not afford it. While propaganda has always been a prime component of US foreign policy, never before did US officials so blatantly broadcast their intent to lead a campaign of falsifications and deceit. And while the independence of the media has always been so aberrantly compromised by various business and official control mechanisms, never before were reporters enlisted (embedded) with army units, while ex-army generals bombarded the US public with all sorts of misinformation, without questioning the government’s motives and its methods. Storm Warning: How the flood compromises U.S. foreign policy (Richard N. Haass, Slate, September 9th, 2005) “The images about Katrina seen around the world communicated a lack of competence and considerable chaos and suffering. The dominant overseas reaction has been sympathy mixed with shock and horror at what was seen by many as evidence of racism and a reminder of the extreme poverty in which many Americans live. The world's only remaining superpower appeared to be anything but. In an era of 24-hour satellite television and the Internet, public diplomacy is about who Americans are and what they do, not just what they say. Unlike Las Vegas, what happens here does not stay here.” Hurricane Katrina: Domestic and…... FULL TEXT

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