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INTRODUCTION
“Oh I come from a land from a far away place, where the caravan
camels roam. Where they cut off your ear if they don’t like your
face. It’s barbaric, but hey it’s home” (Aladdin, 1992). This
is just one example of how non-Western cultures are unfairly portrayed
in the media. “The song slanders an entire people, setting the tone
of the movie” (Shaheen, 422). “What impressions of Arabia can children
have when hearing a song whose main enticing theme is uncivilized folk
advocating ear chopping?” (Shaheen, 422).
The popular media often dehumanizes and stereotypes certain sects of people. One of the things we found interesting, is how the Western media dehumanizes particularly the Middle Eastern sect. The above cited example is one of many that is instilled in our children almost from the point of birth. Examples like the one above, a blockbuster mega-hit which millions of Americans saw, permeate not only entertainment media, but also news media. It is precisely these types of images that influence and shape the way Americans perceive other cultures. What is so distressing about these images is the readiness with which Americans readily accept without so much as question of their validity.
Throughout this paper and our presentation we will distill the central concepts from this chapter and use media coverage from The Persian Gulf War to illustrate these concepts. Using The Enemy Image and the readiness of the American public to accept global mayhem coupled with the fact that America has vested financial interest in the Middle East, particularly in the oil industry, leads the public to believe a path of lies and deceit which the media asserts in order to gain public approval for the war.
After using the media coverage of the Persian Gulf War to highlight
these concepts we will each divulge personal experience with the people
and the cultures of the Middle East and information from the American government
regarding the perception of America’s war on Iraq. Paul is privy
to governmental information about the war that the general American public
does not have access to. The letters, documents and data which he
obtained from government sources will inform us of the dramatic misperceptions
that the public were led to believe. Christy’s Iraqi relatives explain
from a personal stand point their views on Saddam Hussein and our war on
his country. Kerry will relate her personal experience living in
Saudi Arabia. These experiences gave her a different perspective
on the media’s representation on Arabs.
We hope that our paper and presentation will open people’s eyes
and expose the bias used in American media to influence the public.
We also hope to show the instrumental role the media plays in developing
national images, not only in our country, but also in the countries of
others.