Journalism at UMD

He says "I think now that it was the right decision. The media gave my son the due that he was due."

He would know. He witnessed it first hand. He was there on April 5th when a casket was carried off a plane at the Dover Air Force base in Delaware. The casket, draped with a star spangled banner and carried with care by an Air Force honor guard, contained his son Phillip.

For the first time in 18 years, the media also witnessed it. The arrival of the body of Staff Sgt. Phillip Myers to the Dover Air Force Base was the first time that media photography of a "dignified transfer" was allowed since 1991.

Since the invention of photography, the American media has ambitiously used it to publicize the news of our nation's wars. Without fail, controversy ensues.

In the American Civil War, photographer Matthew Brady employed a team of men to go out into the battlefield and snap (a drastic understatement of the process) pictures of the unfolding battle. Today, many experts deduce that Brady manipulated his photos, positioning dead soldiers in dramatic and artful poses.

In the two World Wars, American journalists sent home pictures from overseas, documenting the progress of the war. However, there was meticulous government censorship imposed on these photos, and many believe that it significantly influenced the public perception of the war.

In Vietnam, the unprecedented access by journalists and powerful raw video and photography gave America an unfiltered look into the nature of war. It tipped the verdict in the court of public opinion against our military's involvement.

In 1991, President George H. W. Bush issued a ruling that banned photography at the Dover Air Force Base, which is the first waypoint on American soil of the journey home of every U.S. soldier killed overseas. The formal ceremony, known as a "dignified transfer," involves the unloading of the caskets from the Air Force transport plane.

In a cover story for News Media & Law, attorney Grant Penrod, a then Legal Fellow for the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, said "The Pentagon's ban on media coverage of the coffins brought to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware looks to many journalists like an effort to control reporting that might bring a negative image to war."

However, in February of 2009, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates reviewed and reversed the policy, saying that the families of the fallen soldiers will be given the option of whether or not to allow media coverage of the ceremony. The family of Staff Sgt. Myers gave permission to the media to photograph his dignified transfer on April 5th, the media's first in 18 years.

Joshua Roberts, a freelance photographer on assignment for Reuters, was one of the dozens of photographers and journalists covering the historic ceremony.

"This is the first time we are seeing it in 18 years and this is a major story," he said. "We are fighting wars in two different parts of the world, and people are dying and nobody ever sees. You know about the consequences, but this is one of the official bodies coming home. This really happened. U.S. soldiers are dying overseas."

Eddie Myers said "I think that the media being there is a good thing. They need to see that there are bodies coming back. I don't necessarily disagree with the war, but I think America needs to see that we're losing people."

Roberts said "(The photography) is showing the consequences of a political decision. Our political leaders have made a decision to be fighting a war in Iraq and Afghanistan, and its shows the consequences of that decision."

He went on to say that "It also shows the deep respect that the military accords one of their members that have been killed in combat."

"It was called a "dignified transfer." And that is exactly what it ended up being," said Myers. "It was very precise. Properly orchestrated. Very good. It was very special to the family members."

Roberts said "whether (the media) is there or not, there is still going to be the same welcoming committee."

Myers said that the final consent was given by Sgt. Myers' wife Aimee. "She wanted America to see that we have bodies coming back, that not everybody is coming home safely."

In the court of public opinion, the jury is still out regarding the ethics and rights of the media in this situation. The families of our fallen heroes have been handed the judge's gavel. As of the end of April, 19 families have been faced with this decision. 14 have consented to media coverage.