PEJ Survey: Journalists In Iraq Defend Coverage -- Dangers Continue Despite 'Surge'

By: Joe Strupp Journalists covering the war in Iraq contend stories about ordinary Iraqis are not getting the play that the U.S. military and insurgents are, according to a study released Wednesday.

It reveals: "Overall, journalists working in Iraq give their own coverage a mixed but generally positive assessment. A majority (58%) regard press coverage in Iraq as 'good,' the second-highest mark. Another 16% rate the coverage as excellent. But nearly a quarter (23%) rate the coverage as only fair. Another 2% grade the coverage as poor."

Most also say reporting has not been overly negative, adding that the situation there is actually worse than most Americans believe. The survey was conducted this fall -- after claims of a drop in violence first appeared. More than half (58%) say one of their Iraqi staffers has either been killed or kidnapped in the last year alone. Almost 9 in 10 say staffers can not safely identify themselves as journalists.

"Above all, the journalists -- most of them veteran war correspondents -- describe conditions in Iraq as the most perilous they have ever encountered, and this above everything else is influencing the reporting," the report from the Project for Excellence in Journalism stated. "A majority of journalists surveyed say most of the country is too dangerous to visit. Nine out of ten say that about at least half of Baghdad itself. Wherever they go, traveling with armed guards and chase vehicles is the norm for more than seven out of ten surveyed."

The survey, available at www.journalism.org, was conducted between Sept. 28, 2007, and Nov. 7, 2007, and includes responses from 111 journalists who have worked or are currently in Iraq, the report states. At least 90% were in Iraq when they responded.

"The journalists are from 29 different news organizations (all of them U.S. based except for one) that have had staff in Iraq?including newspapers, wire services, magazines, radio, and network and cable TV," the report states. "This represents, by best estimates, every news organization in the U.S. save one that has had a correspondent in Iraq for at least one month since January 2006."

Among the findings:

? "Even the basics of getting the story are remarkably difficult. Outside of the heavily-fortified Green Zone, most U.S. journalists must rely on local staff to do the necessary face-to-face reporting. Yet nearly nine out of ten journalists say their local staff cannot carry any equipment?not even a notebook?that might identify them as working for the press."

* 82% say half or more of all street reporting is done by Iraqi staffers. They have concerns about this reliance, with 21% say they are very worried about it and 46% saying they are somewhat worried.

? "Most journalists have a positive view of the U.S. military?s embedding program for reporters. While they acknowledge the limited perspective it provides, they believe it offers access to information they could not otherwise get. And most journalists, eight out of ten, feel that, over time, conditions for telling the story of Iraq have gotten worse, not better. "

? "The Iraq press corps gives the highest marks to coverage of American troops. Eight-in-ten journalists (82%) rate the reporting on that topic as excellent or good. The second-highest marks came for coverage of the war against insurgents. Nearly two-thirds of the journalists surveyed (62%) rate the coverage of that aspect of the story in Iraq as excellent or good."

? "The journalists are not as praiseworthy of their coverage of efforts to prevent civil war (44% excellent or good) or to rebuild the country (36% excellent or good). Their lowest marks, however, are for coverage of the lives of ordinary Iraqis. A large majority of journalists (62%) regard that coverage as only fair to poor."

? "Fully 62% of those surveyed report that threats or assaults against their Iraqi staffers occur at least several times a month; in some bureaus, they occur several times a week or even daily. And the threats are not idle."

? "Eight-in-ten journalists (79%) believe conditions have deteriorated for reporters since their own first posting in the country. Barely one in ten (8%) say that conditions have remained the same and only 2% say conditions for reporters have improved."

* Most "under-reported" stories: Impact on Iraqi civilians
(42%), Contractors (17%), economic problems/ Infrastructure, Iraqi Politics.

*Most "over-reported": U.S. military strategy (29%), day-to-day violence/events (21%), contractors, visits or statements by elected officials.