Simplifying the Kosovo Conflict through Media...

In the summer of 1996, hints of violence began to arise from Europe. This time, however, it was not from Bosnia or Russia, but Yugoslavia. In Yugoslavia, President Slobodan Milosevic was leading an all-out attack on the ethnic Albanians of the country. Rumors of ethnic cleansing and genocide began to grow as the Serbians sought to drive all Albanians out of their country. By 1998, a full-scale war had erupted between the Albanians and the Serbians as both fought for autonomy of one tiny piece of land: Kosovo. When NATO finally intervened, press coverage began to intensify. NATO entered the war on the side of the Albanians, and as a result press coverage immediately shifted to support this cause. In order to make the conflict†¦show more content†¦And last week, as they were leaving, the Serbs torched parts of town, even the local hospital† (Cullen A2). By focusing on the war crimes of the Serbians, the Kosovo crisis was slowly formed into a one-dimensional war. Intervention by NATO was shown as the only justifiable response to such a tragedy. For example, one story in the Atlanta Journal Constitiution reported, â€Å"The murders in Kosovo can only be described as genocide. Pregnant women and children have been mutilated and killed, elderly people shot in the back, for one reason. They are ethnic Albanians living in the Serb-controlled province of Kosovo† (â€Å"No room for negotiation† A10). President Clinton was even quoted in an article in The Guardian as comparing President Milosevic to Adolph Hitler. In almost all articles written by NATO countries at this time, the Serbians and Milosevic were depicted as the obvious enemy of the war. One paper reported, â€Å"Mr. Milosevic’s demagogic, Serbian-chauvinist government continues to repress ethnic Albanians in Kosovo, and most Kosovars still want independence from Yugoslavia† (â€Å"Hostility and Hope in Kosovo† B6). One article even called helpfu l Serbians Schindlers, â€Å"nicknamed after Oskar Schindler, who saved Jews from Nazi slaughter† (Milligan 1). By comparing this crisis to the Holocaust, the media was able to strike the hearts of the people directly. However, through coverage such as this, the public was left uninformed about much of the reasoning