The Toppling of Saddam Hussein’s Statue Misleads America

After reading Article 14, The Toppling, I find it appalling that the media used to make the military create or recreate events just so the people at home had something to be entertained by. War videos should not be considered entertainment, but a very serious issue. These are people’s lives at stake here, so making up events for ratings, I believe, is a horrible thing to do. I can totally understand how the toppling of Saddam Hussein’s statue was perceived as the war coming to an end. Daniel J. Boorstin coined the term “pseudo-events” and that is exactly what people thought the destroying of Saddam’s statue was. I think it is very misleading to everyone, but especially to the military families. If events are created to make it look like the war is coming to an end or the Americans got this crazy victory, then they would get false hope that their loved ones were coming home soon. I think it is sad that people now look at events such as the toppling of the statue as either a fake event or that the war was over. People need to take the event as it is and let the reporters do their job and explain to everyone what was happening at the time of the scene. Also, the fact that people have to think whether what they are seeing is real-time or after the fact should really not be an issue. Journalists should only report the truth because that is one of the ethical standards when you join this profession. The media needs to reevaluate their purpose when they are filming war so that people can get accurate information without misleading them.