Expanding the limits of war reporting:
A discussion on Outside the Wire: The War in Afghanistan
in the Words of Its Participants
Edited by Kevin Patterson and
Jane Warren
Review by Elecia Chrunik, March 2008
The stories told by journalists
embedded in war zones are invaluable, but cannot paint a complete
picture of any war because they are mediated by constraints. They
provide as clear and true a picture as possible but remain limited
by their role as journalists; they are observers and conveyers,
not soldiers or war workers with first hand accounts of the action
and the atrocities.
Outside the Wire uncovers the stories and narratives of
those whose voices are often represented but seldom heard first
hand. Kevin Patterson, MD, and Jane Warren have gathered 17 stories
and reflections from doctors, soldiers and aid workers that have
lived in and worked through the war in Afghanistan — those
who empty their guns on the enemy, who exchange cultural values
behind closed doors and who manage emotions and destruction only
war can cause.
Outside the Wire broadens the horizons of traditional journalism
by including letters home and diary entries that capture the war’s
subtleties. Included are emailed letters from Captain Nicola Goddard
written only a few weeks before she was killed on duty. Her account
of the ceremonies to say goodbye to fallen American and Canadian
soldiers hauntingly foreshadows her own fate, though her commitment
to the mission remains firm. “There is nowhere else I’d
rather be right now,” she writes.
The world’s high-speed technological capacity is creating
communities of entrenched citizen journalists who are redefining
what journalism means and the role it should play. It is no longer
seen as enough to have one correspondent relay the news from as
close to the front lines as possible. Audiences demand real-time
information from a variety of voices because they are growing accustomed
to accessing information from almost anywhere, anytime.
Traditional ethical journalistic codes must be reconsidered (“Should
we run it?”) when a cell phone captures a beheading and the
image is posted on YouTube. But when media are censored, like in
the current situation in Tibet, embedded bloggers – often
regular citizens – might be the most reliable source of information.
They become the de facto journalists.
Dr. Patterson, along with Outside the Wire contributors
Maureen Mayhew, MD, and Corporal Gordon Whitton recently assembled
to read passages and answer questions at the UBC School of Journalism
It is clear, they said, that within the Canadian dialogue there
is a disconnect between public acceptance and understanding of the
mission in Afghanistan and the intentions and motivations of the
people involved.
“What [the book] does for citizens – showing the conditions
we are operating in – is not a critical aspect but a more
visceral account of how people handle things on a daily basis,”
said Corporal Whitton.
The book’s significance lies in providing Canadians with the
knowledge to make informed decisions about supporting the troops
based on the human aspects of the war, said Dr. Patterson. “People
involved in Afghanistan have a lingering frustration about the ambivalent
sense of detachment from a lot of Canadians.
Outside the Wire hopes to fill the gap created by the lack
of journalists outside of the main city centers and war hot spots.
“Where are the journalists interviewing Taliban and people
living in the country side?” asked Dr. Kennedy.
Kennedy also addressed what he considers to be the weakness of the
book, that there are no Afghan voices. “We tried to approach
the idea but it was met with little success. There is a reluctance
to speak out there.”
The absence of Afghan voices is partly bridged by accounts from
Dr. Mayhew. She has been to Afghanistan four times as a physician.
Her first trip was during the Taliban rule. Her experiences shed
light on cultural differences that are often misconstrued in western
media.
She writes about living in a small village. “Surprisingly,
women in rural areas appeared to have more freedom than their city
counterparts. I lived in Bala Morghab, a village of with a population
of five thousand… they chatted animatedly, burka covers flipped
up to expose their faces. When men passed, the face screens came
down and the laughter vanished. Some women continued talking while
covering and uncovering their faces numerous times, as if it were
a game. Frequently when we conversed, I felt at a disadvantage because
women in burkas could read my face, whereas my view of their faces
was limited to two dark spots, hidden eyes.”
As a doctor and a friend to many Afghan women, Dr. Mayhew is able
to draw from her experiences at weddings and afternoon teas to relate
a complex picture of the women there. It is a multifaceted view
that is often neglected in mainstream western media and culture.
“There are many different types of women,” she said.
“Some are happy and some much better off if they are out of
the situation. But some were happy with the situation as it was.
Even though rights are not as how we would want, many women have
a happy and functional life.”
It is just one example of how these highly personal stories serve
the Canadian public in a way that mainstream and traditional media
cannot. There is no doubt that journalists do a great public service.
They provide facts and stories that are necessary for those back
home to engage in an informed dialogue about the war.
But there is often a lack of interest or understanding on this side
of the world about why Canada has troops in Afghanistan and whether
or not it is a worthwhile mission. Outside the Wire functions
to further the exchange of ideas by presenting the nuances and gradations,
the complexities that make war so contentious in the first place.
According to the three panelists who have immediate sensory experience
to base their opinions on, it is definitely a worthwhile mission.
All three are in support of troops deployed there and see a healthy
future in Afghanistan as something Canadians will one day be proud
of helping achieve.
Outside the Wire expands the traditional role of journalism’s public service. It shows the pride and determination of those on the front lines while simultaneously revealing their doubts and fears. But the book’s goal to educate the public on all aspects of a war is its most valuable contribution.
Elecia Chrunik is a Vancouver-based writer and graduate student at the UBC School of Journalism
Previous reviews
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Deeper By Robert Cribb, Dean Jobb, David McKie,
Fred Vallance-Jones Review by Kendyl Salcito, June 2006
