October 15, 2004
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CONGRESS ENDORSES MEDIA BLACKOUT ON MILITARY COFFINS
The Department of Defense was correct to prohibit news media coverage
of the transfer of coffins of U.S. military personnel killed in
Iraq
or their arrival at Dover Air
Force Base, Congress declared in the new Defense Authorization
Act.
The DoD policy serves to protect the privacy of the families and
friends of the deceased, Congress indicated.
Furthermore, "It is the sense of Congress that the Department of
Defense policy regarding no media coverage of the transfer of the
remains of deceased members of the Armed Forces ... is consistent
with United States constitutional guarantees of freedom of speech
and freedom of the press."
Critics of the DoD policy argue that photographs of flag-draped
coffins could not possibly infringe on individual privacy, and that
the prohibition on news media coverage tends to obscure the human
costs of the war in Iraq.
The news media blackout has recently been challenged in litigation
by journalism professor Ralph Begleiter, assisted by the National
Security Archive and the law firm Jenner & Block.
See the new congressional provision in section 1082 of the 2005
Defense Authorization Act here.
© 2004, Federation of American Scientists.
All opinions expressed in this article are the author's and do not
necessarily reflect those of Military.com.
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