Paper Soldiers: The American Press and the Vietnam War

by Clarence R. Wyatt

Book Overview

Praised and condemned for its aggressive coverage of the Vietnam War, the American press has been both commended for breaking public support and bringing the war to an end and accused of misrepresenting the nature and progress of the war. While in-depth combat coverage and the instantaneous power of television were used to challenge the war, Clarence R. Wyatt demonstrates that, more often than not, the press reported official information, statements,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0393353877
• ISBN13: 9780393353877
• Release Date: April 1993
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Length: 274 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.5" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

Detailed Exploration of Print Reporters in Vietnam

Paper Soldiers is an in-depth look at print media and those who wrote it during the Vietnam War. Wyatt has really given us a LOT of information here: - The media build-up during America's march to war. - How, when and with whom the government's media briefings were held. - Relationships between reporters (including preferential treatment of those newsmen who worked for organization giving pro-government coverage). - Life in Saigon for the hundreds of newsmen who flocked there. - Who really was in control of the flow of information, and how it was disseminated to the public. Yes, Wyatt leans toward the media and away from the government, but in comparison to a lot of other Vietnam War sources out there this one weighs heavy on facts and light on commentary and/or bias. And it purposely leaves out television news (except for comparison against print content) as a subject that's already been covered in depth.

An easy, informative read

This book is, for starters, a fairly easy read, and doesn't require much background knowledge of Vietnam. While it deflates the often overglorified view of the role of the press in Vietnam, the book does seem to favor the press over the South Vietnamese and U.S. governments. Wyatt stops short of actually laying blame of any negative reporting on the government, but they are certainly presented as the main indirect source. As for the common thread of television mentioned in other reviews, his attention paid to the topic is disappointing. While television should not have been the focus of the book, it probably deserves more than the one or two pages alloted to it. Still, overall the book does an excellent job of clarifying the role of news media in the war. I would certianly recommend reading it in order to gain a more enlightened view on this topic.

If you know how to write history, you know how good this is

As a graduate student of history, I know that you cannot possibly write about every aspect of anything (especially the Vietnam War) in a book. If one were to write about everything on the Vietnam War, there would be a library full of volumes. Wyatt has chosen to focus on one aspect, one that has been ignored so often (which is why the previous reviewer can only cite one public avenue - television). Many books have been written on the role of television. The challenge to historians is to find something new, and Wyatt does a beautiful job of it. The intricacies he finds within the paper media are amazing, and his analysis never fails.Wyatt is an incredible historian and an equally incredible man. I absolutely recommend this book.