Keith Kay and Covering War

American journalists covering war have faced challenges and the greatest of these have been access.

Keith Kay, a cameraman for CBS, gave a lecture on his experiences covering wars for the television network. His resume includes coverage of the Vietnam and Gulf Wars.

Kay spoke about the battles he faced with the U.S. military to get access to war-ravaged areas, particularly during the Gulf War. He said in Vietnam, as long as you could find a helicopter or convoy with space, you could ride along and cover your story with limited restrictions. He said he believes the junior officers in Vietnam saw what reporters were doing, and when some of those transitioned to commanders in the Gulf War, they made sure restrictions were put in place.

"They still believe the media is to blame for losing the Vietnam War," Kay said.

The difference in the Gulf War was Kay had to go to officer with a story idea, and they were rarely honored. He said military commanders would take reporters and cameramen to see new artillery and things such as that, but other stories were out of the question. He feels the military was censoring indirectly.

In regards to what journalists have to do now to cover the Iraq War, Kay said it is a total violation of constitutional rights to portray the war through embedded journalists. He said journalists have no transportation of their own, cannot satisfy curiousity and are totally dependent on the military for food, transportation and shelter.

"You would have more access to the officers and to american soldiers, but only under their control," he said.

To be a journalist covering war means patience, the drive to show the news at is and fighting for what you believe in.