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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Hawkmoon who wrote (26810)	4/24/2002 9:46:54 AM
From: Paul Kern	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

Which brings up a question I've always wondered about Paul... Just how many of these photos we see plastered over the news are actually "staged" events where demonstrators see a group of photographers and then decide to take an action (throw stones.. etc) that will get them in the headlines?? That kind of "set-up shot" strikes me rather differently than capturing a moment of spontaneous action/reaction. I'm off to the studio so this has to be brief. The events are set ups but are really very dangerous theater where real people die to be captured on camera as part of the Pals' PR offensive. Typically, the PLO would pass the word around that there will be a "demo" in a particular neighborhood or village at a certain time. Middle Eastern time being similar to other third world time, but, without the usual sense of urgency, some hours later, when enough press have assembled, the youths set some tires on fire to attract the IDF and, when they arrive, everyone know their part. Many of the youths you see being carried off on litters to waiting ambulances are throwing stones a block away ten minutes later. The press is complicit. We get our pictures and the Pals get to be on TV. Everyone is happy. Rarely is there a reporter in sight. Most often they either arrive when it's all over, interview some Pals about the IDF atrocities and number of dead and "wounded" and leave. Many reporters rely on their Pal stringers and never leave the relative safety Jerusalem. Lebanon was different. The various militias fought real battles for real turf there and a lot of fighters were wounded or killed. UPI stopped sending me there in early 1990 because of the journalist kidnappings and I began refusing Sygma assignments to Lebanon in 1992 because it was too confusing and dangerous.