Below is reprinted an article from FAIR, or Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting. It can also be found at:
http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=3596
I offer it here as an example of the distorted media coverage in the US. It is rather long and very US-centric, but presents the situation quite clearly. Perhaps readers can point out more balanced examples of how this story has been covered in Australia. Our Media Watch is not enough to keep the media fair and accuracy.
FAIR Media Advisory 8/14/08
U.S. corporate media frequently evoked the Cold War as a key to understanding the conflict between Russia and Georgia over South Ossetia. This was certainly true of the media themselves, which generally placed black hats or white hats on the actors involved depending on whether they were allied with Moscow or Washington.
On August 11, NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams referred to “what’s being called the Russian blitz of the nation of Georgia, former Soviet republic that split away and is now threatening to split apart from within.” NBC reporter Jim Maceda followed up: “The powerful Russian war machine is moving ever deeper into Georgia, and teaching all of us really a lesson about what makes Russia tick.” Maceda then gave what has become the standard media template for describing the conflict:
“It started as a gamble by Georgia, the former Soviet republic and darling of the West: Move quickly into the reakaway pro-Russian enclave called South Ossetia and take back what is legally Georgia’s. But the plan failed. Instead, Russian forces invaded Georgia last week and crushed Georgian resistance. According to U.S.
military officials, Russia is out to decimate the U.S.-trained Georgian armed forces.”
Maceda concluded: “But after hundreds, perhaps thousands killed and tens of thousands displaced, tonight Georgians are asking, ‘When will the Russian bear stop?'”
But buried within this U.S. media narrative is an entirely different way to understand the conflict. In this reading, South Ossetia (like the similar enclave of Abkhazia) is an area that has been largely independent of Georgia ever since the breakup of the Soviet Union. Russian forces have been present in both South Ossetia and Abkhazia since the early 1990s, defending the separatist regions against Georgian attempts to forcibly incorporate the erritories. The situation has repeatedly broken out into open combat, most recently early this month, when fighting between Georgian and separatist forces escalated into full-scale efforts by Georgia to reclaim both breakaway territories.
Georgia’s military efforts–which involved, according to reports from Human Rights Watch (8/10/08, 8/14//08) and Western reporters on the scene (Washington Post, 8/12/08), intensive shelling of civilian areas–reportedly caused many noncombatant deaths and prompted a large proportion of the South Ossetian population to seek safety in Russia. It was this humanitarian crisis, coupled with Georgian attacks on Russian forces in the separatist areas, that Moscow cited as its justification for its military intervention. This does not suggest that Russian tactics are beyond criticism, or that a military response of this magnitude is justified.
Georgia’s contribution to the escalation of tensions in the region were not completely ignored by U.S. media, but its aggressive actions were often euphemized, as in AP’s reference to “a crackdown by Georgia last week” (8/11/08), and were rarely allowed to interfere with the preferred narrative of Georgia as victim of an expansionist Russia.
On CBS Evening News (8/11/08), Katie Couric asked correspondent Wyatt Andrews, “So how did this fighting start and what is it really all about?” Andrews’ response avoided the issue almost entirely, declaring: “What’s troubling about this war fought in a relatively unknown region is that none of the suffering here is about the enclave of Ossetia. This war is all about Russia and the message Russia is sending to the world.” Andrews went to explain that Russian Prime Minister Vladmir Putin “has been planning this attack on Georgia for years.”
Similar language was prevalent in media accounts that stressed Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili’s allegedly pro-democratic tendencies and Western education. (Saakashvili took power in a 2004 election in which he got more than 96 percent of the vote; he was re-elected in more competitive January 2008 balloting that was marred by state intimidation of opposition parties, according to an Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe report.) As the Los Angeles Times put it (8/13/08): “Russia has itched to strike at southern neighbor Georgia’s brash, Western-oriented leader, President Mikheil Saakashvili. And Saakashvili gave the Kremlin an opportunity when he sent troops into the separatist region of South Ossetia last week in an effort to reassert Georgia’s sovereignty.”
A few outlets did remind readers of Saakashvili’s crackdowns on dissent and independent media outlets (Los Angeles Times, 8/12/08; The Guardian, 8/14/08). But for the most part, the conflict was presented as black-and-white struggle between Moscow’s despotic aggression and Georgia’s pro-Western democracy. Any possible
alternative perspective was more often denounced than presented, as when a Washington Post editorial (8/12/08) declared that “the most urgent need is to see clearly what is taking place. As the crisis deepened, one could hear in Washington the usual attempts to blame the victim, as if Georgia somehow deserved this fate because its elected government had opted for friendly relations with the West.”
Actually, few in Washington seemed to be making a case for punishing Georgia for being friendly with the U.S. There was, however, competition among U.S. pundits for the most aggressive condemnation of Russia. Washington Post columnist Richard Cohen wrote (8/12/08), “Russia, as my grandmother could have told George W. Bush, always fights dirty.” Post columnist George Will (8/12/08), meanwhile, declared that “Russia’s aggression is really about the subordination of Georgia, a democratic, market-oriented U.S. ally.” L.A. Times columnist Max Boot (8/12/08) compared Russia to Nazi Germany–while allowing that the analogy “may appear overwrought.” Writing
in the Washington Post (8/11/08), Robert Kagan also made a comparison to Nazi Germany.
A striking feature of the coverage was the ability of pundits who have enthusiastically advocated for U.S. Invasions of sovereign countries, dismissing concerns that these would violate international law, to demand that Russia be punished for breaking that same law by violating Georgian sovereignty. These commentators seemed blissfully unaware of the contradiction, as when New York Times columnist William Kristol wrote (8/11/08) that “in Iraq, we and our Iraqi allies are on the verge of a strategic victory over the jihadists,” citing this as evidence that 2008 was “an auspicious year for freedom and democracy,” while two paragraphs later condemning the fact that “Russia has sent troops and tanks across an international border.” Kristol even cited Georgia’s eager participation in the violation of Iraq’s sovereignty as a primary reason that “we owe Georgia a serious effort to defend its sovereignty.”
Alternatives to the official media narrative were difficult to find outside of independent and foreign media (Just World News, 8/10/08; Real News Network, 8/12/08; Georgia Straight, 8/11/08; Guardian, 8/14/08). Hypocrisy, unfortunately, was much easier to find in corporate media coverage than disinterested humanitarian concern.

Posted for, and written by Ivan Simic
On August 8, 2008, South Ossetia attracted world’s attention when Russian military forces entered Georgian territory, and seriously interfered in the Georgian-South Ossetian unresolved conflict. This conflict is well known to the world, yet, current Russian military intervention helped amplify the dispute.
South Ossetia is a small region in the South Caucasus within the territory of Georgia. She has been a de facto independent from Georgia since its declaration of independence as the Republic of South Ossetia in 1990; however, South Ossetia continues to be part of Georgia, since it was not diplomatically recognized by any member of the United Nations.
Georgia was part of the Soviet Union from 1922 until its independence in 1991. Since its independence from the Soviet Union, Georgia has been facing many difficulties: first, there was civil unrest and economic crises, then came a Revolution in 2003, when then President of Georgia, Eduard Shevardnadze was ousted from power; and, finally, the unresolved secessionist conflicts in Abkhazia and South Ossetia; Russia’s allied regions.
We may recall the genesis of the current situation which has been precipitated by the 1918-1920 Georgian-Ossetian conflict. Later, in 1922 the South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast was created after Soviet occupation of Georgia. In the eighties, the conflict was followed by rising nationalism in the former Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic, the South Ossetian desire for greater autonomy, Ossetian demands for unification with Russia’s North Ossetia, and persistent Ossetian declarations of independence.
In 1989, from ethno-political conflict, the Georgian-South Ossetian conflict evolved to civil war in January 1991. War was fought between Georgian government forces and ethnic Georgian militias on one side and South Ossetian secessionists and North Ossetian volunteers on the other, with periodic participation of Russian military forces. Russian officials including the then President of the Russian Federation, Boris Yeltsin made supporting statements for Ossetians. The war ended in June 1992 when the Head of the State Council of Georgia, Eduard Shevardnadze and the Russian President Boris Yeltsin met to discuss the question of South Ossetia. By some estimates, around 3000 people were killed in that war.
In May 2004, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili offered humanitarian aid to both Georgian and Ossetian population in South Ossetia and promised to give the region broad autonomy; however, that did not stop violence. New conflict between South Ossetians and Georgians forces accrued in mid June 2004 when Georgian forces closed Ossetian main supply market for tax-free goods from Russia in order to stop smuggling. In retaliation, South Ossetian forces blocked the highway between Georgia and Russia. Later, Georgian forces intercepted Russian convoy with military equipment, including missiles. This interception created tension between Georgia and Russia, and the subsequent incarceration of around fifty Georgian peacekeepers by South Ossetian militants. In mid August 2004, a ceasefire agreement was signed, but just few days later, was violated.
In January 2005, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili presented a new plan for resolving the Georgian-South Ossetian conflict. This proposal included broader forms of autonomy, including a constitutional guarantee of free and directly elected local self-governance. Among others, President Saakashvili stated that South Ossetia’s parliament would have control over issues such as culture, education, social policy, economic policy, public order, organization of local self-governance and environmental protection. No agreement was signed, although the United States government and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) supported Georgian action plan.
In September 2006, South Ossetian forces opened fire at a Georgian helicopter carrying Irakli Okruashvili, the Minister of Defence of Georgia. South Ossetian de facto government confirmed their troops were responsible for the attack, alleging that the helicopter had entered their air space. Later in September 2007, Irakli Okruashvili was arrested on charges of extortion, money laundering, and abuse of power while still Georgia’s Defence Minister. A Georgian court found him guilty and sentenced him to 11 years imprisonment in absentia. However, Okruashvili did not go to jail, he was granted political asylum in France.
In May 2007, Dmitry Sanakoyev was appointed by the President of Georgia the Head of South Ossetian Provisional Administrative Entity. Sanakoyev’s new resolution plan earned approval from the United States government, but not Russia’s. This move alarmed the de facto authorities in South Ossetian capital Tskhinvali, and without any delay, South Ossetian separatists ordered that traffic to ethnic Georgian villages be blocked, and threatened to overthrow Sanakoyev’s government by force.
In July 2007, Georgia set up a State Commission, chaired by the Georgian Prime Minister, Zurab Noghaideli, to develop South Ossetia’s autonomous status within the Georgian State.
In August 2007, a new conflict occurred: the Georgian missile incident. This time incident was between Georgia and Russia. Georgian government said that two Russian fighter jets violated its airspace and fired a missile, which fell on the edge of a village of Tsitelubani, near the Georgian-Ossetian conflict zone, but did not explode. Russia denied this allegation and said that Georgia may have fired the missile on their own territory as a way of provoking tensions in the region. This Georgia-Russia incident is not an isolated issue, there were several crises, incidents and accusations in the past, including: the 2004 Adjara crisis, the 2006 North Ossetia sabotages, the 2006 Russian ban of Moldovan and Georgian wines, the 2006 Kodori crisis, the 2006 Georgian-Russian espionage controversy and the March 2007 Georgia helicopter attack incident.
On August 1, 2008, after two months of continuous Georgian-South Ossetian fighting; the South Ossetia war between Georgia, Russia, South Ossetia, and Abkhazia began.
On August 8, following several days of heavy fighting between Georgian army and South Ossetian militants, in which around 1500 civilians, 15 Russian peacekeepers, and dozens of South Ossetian militants were killed. Russia responded by moving its troops across the Georgian border, bringing tanks and artillery into South Ossetia.
According to Russian officials, their main aim was to defend Russian citizens in South Ossetia, and force the Georgian government to accept peace and restore the status quo. Russian officials also stated that its army was acting within its peacekeeping mission in South Ossetia, and in line with the mandate issued by the international community. Tbilisi also stated that it was now responding to Russia’s aggression.
On August 9, conflict between Russia and Georgia escalated, and on August 10, Georgian troops retreated from the capital of South Ossetia.
In relation to the current situation in Georgia, the international community issued many statements: In general, it is calling confronted parties to respect International Law, and for an immediate end to the armed clashes and resumption of direct talks. In New York, at Russia’s request, an emergency session of the United Nations Security Council was held, but failed to reach an agreement on immediately halting of fighting.
Both Georgia and Russia traded counter-accusations; whiles Georgia accused Russia for invasion of land, air, and sea, Russia accused Georgia of genocide against South Ossetians.
According to the latest development there are some pertinent questions that should be asked; these include:
Will the United States seize the opportunity in the current situation in Georgia as an excuse to invade Iran, since they are fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan? By the way, Iran is right in the neighbourhood.
Will the NATO and the EU intervene, and in which form?
Will Russia use the Kosovo situation as an example for South Ossetia?
Is this war foundation of larger Euro-Asian conflicts?
It is still not quite clear what will happen next; however one thing is obvious no country will dare to use military force against Russia, especially not in isolation.