Current Events

One quite recent event which was illustrated by the media is the story of Jessica Lynch. The newspaper The Washington Post published a report on April 3, 2003, about Lynch, a blond-haired 19-year-old soldier who was sent to Iraq. The front-page story noted that “ (...) Private First Class Jessica Lynch, an army clerk from Palestine, West Virginia, had been taken captive by Iraqis following a firefight.” Even grainy footage was being shown on TV. Returning to the so-called ‘Jessica Lynch Hoax’ The Washington Post further posted that “she sustained multiple gunshot wounds” and “fought fiercely (...) firing her weapon until she ran out of ammunition.”
Lynch was taken to a local hospital where, according to the Pentagon, she was held against her will. Defense Secretary Rumsfeld added that “we (the American people) are certainly grateful for the brilliant and courageous rescue of Private First Class Jessica Lynch, who was being held by Iraqi forces in what they called a ‘hospital.’” The riveting drama has just one catch: It is almost entirely untrue. The American media made Lynch a national hero, fighting to the last man and finally saved in a daring rescue by special forces. A fairy tale, too good to be true.
On April 10, Democracy Now! interviewed Andrew Buncombe, a journalist for the British daily The Independent, who had been at the hospital. According to Buncombe, there were no Iraqi troops there. “A big fuss was made, but the reality was that it was a very benign rescue,” Buncombe said. However, America wanted a hero and Lynch was going to be it. In an expose on May 15, BBC News commented that Lynch’s “story is one of the most stunning pieces of news management ever conceived.”