[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 5]
[House]
[Pages 6471-6472]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          MEDIA ACCOUNTABILITY

  (Mr. STEARNS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, recent media interviews, both print and 
television, have subjected our young troops to questions which in my 
mind have no business being posed days before possible military action. 
These interviews

[[Page 6472]]

are asking questions regarding fratricide, combat deaths, chemical or 
biological weapons, ``personal demons,'' and ``bloody urban fighting.'' 
As many of us in the House are veterans, we know the sacrifices that 
come with service, including the loss of life. Our troops and their 
commanders know they must focus on the task assigned and the mission 
objective that must be completed. I believe that focus can be hindered 
when certain media personalities continue to dredge up these feelings 
purely for national coverage. We must be mindful that reporting facts 
is quite different from generating an emotional story for rating 
purposes.
  Today's media has a tremendous amount of access, much more so than 
they did in Desert Storm. There are 600 journalists embedded in our 
military operations. I ask that the media let our troops focus on the 
mission at hand and let them do their job and return home safely.
  Mr. Speaker, recent media interviews both print and television have 
subjected our young troops to questions, which in my mind, have no 
business being posed days before possible military action.
  These interviews are asking questions regarding fratricide, combat 
deaths, chemical or biological weapons, ``personal demons,'' and 
``bloody urban fighting.'' As many of us in the House are veterans, we 
know the sacrifices that come with service, including the loss of life.
  Our troops and their commanders know they must focus on the tasks 
assigned and the mission objectives that must be completed. I believe 
that focus can be hindered when certain media personalities continue to 
dredge up these feelings purely for national coverage.
  Let me state that I do not advocate censorship. I do advocate common 
sense. Providing media access to our troops is necessary to assist in 
providing accurate information for the American public and to counter 
false propaganda from other sources seeking to undermine our 
objectives.
  However, we must be mindful that reporting facts is quite different 
from generating an emotional story for ratings purposes. Today's media 
has a tremendous amount of access--much more so than during Desert 
Storm in 1991. There are 600 journalists embedded in our military 
operations. With that access comes responsibility . . . responsibility 
to the troops, their families and the public. I ask that the media let 
our troops focus on the mission at hand, let them do their job and 
return safely home.

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