Media In Vietnam War

Toward the start of the conflict in Vietnam, the media was basically in favor of the war, as most American had been at the time. The worst of the casualties that occurred during the war were yet to come or were unknown by the general public, and the Cold War era was largely characterized by nationalism over anti-nationalism and the promoting of freedom from the spread of fascist and communist influences. Later, as more of the American and innocent casualties came to light, protests by hippies and the college-educated leftists and grew larger, and the media began to play a more vital role in the anti-war movement. Despite most of the nation being in support of the war, the media aligned with the growing minority in promoting anti-nationalist sentiment. …show more content…
Vietnamese artists created countless works of art as the war was occurring, and the art depicted the strength of their soldiers and the imminent defeat of America, with imagery containing elements such as falling shot-down American planes. American media was somewhat characterized by anti-communist propaganda, as the Cold War was going on; in regard to the Vietnam War effort specifically, however, the media’s promotion of anti-nationalism contributed by greatly undermining the American war effort. The people appearing to be against the war and ashamed of the Vietnam troops only limited the military in its options and likely contributed to the failure of America to reach its goals, as public opinion suggested that the best thing to do was to get out of the situation as fast as