The Media and Foreign Policy

During the past two decades the press in the USA has gained a reputation as a major force affecting both the substance of national policy and the process by which it is formulated. On a host of issues - from the US involvement in Vietnam and Richard Nixon's opening to China to the downfall of Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos - the media has emerged as an important "third presence" influencing the interaction of governments with their domestic publics. And where the influence of the media has grown, controversy has been quick to follow. In this volume leading journalists and officials as well as academic experts analyze the respective roles of the press and the government in the formulation and implementation of foreign policy. One surprising conclusion subscribed by most of the authors is that more, not less, media coverage of foreign affairs is required if both the public interest and the national interest are to be well served.

Table of Contents:
Part 1 Who sets the agenda?: the strategic defense initiative - the President's story, Philip L.Geyelin; Libya - a government story, R.Gregory Nokes; diplomacy in a television age - the dangers of a teledemocracy, David Gergen; the congress and the media - forces in the struggle over foreign policy, Robert J. Kurz. Part 2 Who says what?: leakers, terrorists, policy makers and the press, John P.Wallach; terrorism, media coverage and government response, Robert B.Oakley; the care and handling of leaks, Robert J McCloskey; secrets, Michael A. Ledeen. Part 3 Do the media matter?: the news media and national security, Richard R.Burt; woefully inadequate - the press's handling of arms control, Kenneth L. Adelman; US intelligence - current problems in historical perspective, William E.Odom; a view from the executive branch, Robert E.McFarlane. Part 4 Beyond the beltway: foreign policy and the provincial press, Charles W. Bailey; notes on freedom of the press in Britain and America, Harold Evans; the Italian press and the Moro affair, John L.Harper; new communications technolocy and the international political process, David Webster; neither hero nor villian, Simon Serfaty.