American Valor Quarterly Issue 1 - Winter 2007 | Page 27

dissent expressed in America was playing a role in the war.
North Vietnam’s prime minister, Pham Van Dong, was
public with his opinion that “[Nixon] has everything to lose
except the honorable exit we are determined to enable him
to make.”
It was not until January of 1973 that it was confirmed that
the United States was would be leaving Vietnam. While
the peace accord had been reached and feelings of relief
came to the nation, some still expressed hesitation in how
long the peace might be able to last, including South Vietnam
President Nguyen Van Thieu. Thieu’s reservations were
justified, as he declared in 1974 that war had begun again
only to be fought for a year before South Vietnam fell to
the communists on April 30, 1975.
Media’s Role

of the fence. One understanding of the statement shows
that the public views Vietnam as a failure and that this war
is heading in the same direction. It also illustrates that the
public does not think that it was the troop withdrawal that
caused failure in Vietnam, but that defeat occurred much
earlier than 1973 and we should have withdrawn much
sooner. The public’s desire to remove troops also proves
that they did not see the conflict in Vietnam as a clear and
present danger at the time or believed that it would be in
the future. This plea for a complete troop exit strategy is
not something that occurred after World War II; there are
still troops in Germany and Japan. On the other side it is
argued that we pulled out too soon and admitted an
unwarranted defeat that cannot happen again.
A significant aspect of the comparison between Vietnam
and Iraq that is often overlooked is that these were two
different wars, under completely different circumstances
yet they have created very similar responses at home. This
seems to show that the public will only accept a war where
they can see a clear immediate threat to our national security.
It is the responsibility of the media to provide information
so that well informed decisions and opinions surface
ensuring what is best for the country now and in the future.
Responsible for the first draft of history, the press is charged
with immense power that must not be taken lightly meaning
that the performance of the press should be often evaluated,
critiqued and corrected.

It was not the media’s fault South Vietnam collapsed
without the support of the American military. Vietnam
was too complicated of a war to place blame on only one
party, but the media did not help in clarifying the war for
anyone. It is difficult to conclude that the tone of the media
was what urged the American government to pull out troops,
and it is even a more complex issue to say that the U.S.
presence in South Vietnam would have lead to peace with
no fear of communist takeover. Nonetheless Americans
did not have a complete understanding that our presence
in Vietnam was justified by our commitment to stopping
the spread of communism through our promise to support The failure to communicate with the American public during
the Vietnam War explicitly reveals the shortcomings of the
South Vietnam.
press, as well as the great power and responsibility that is
The media’s failure to communicate to the public during by nature a concern for the institution. Americans reacted
the war encouraged a mix of feelings concerning our to the information that was provided with no way of
retrospective opinion of the war that has seemed to result determining the validity of each report. Misused
in a common tone of disrespect for the effort. Evidence anonymous sources, unchecked information,
of this lack of respect is seen through false depictions of sensationalized broadcasts, and uncorrected mistakes all
the disheveled Vietnam veteran that generalizes a led to an uniformed public that must now reexamine the
generation of men as tragic survivors of this horrible war. conflict in order to properly understand the reality of the
Variations of the myth instill ideas that a majority of situation.
Vietnam veterans suffer from posttraumatic stress disorder
(PTSD), have high suicide rates, and cannot keep a job. Sources for this article include Triumph Forsaken by Mark Moyar,
Suffering from PTSD less than World War II veterans and (Cambridge University Press: 2006), Summons of the Trumpet by
having suicide rates no different than the non-veteran, the Dave R. Palmer (Presidio Press: 1978), The Big Story by Peter Braestrup
Vietnam veteran has blended into society and taken on (Presidio Press: 1994), Vietnam: A History, by Stanley Karnow (Penguin
responsibilities at both a respected working class and Books: 1984), and Vietnam: The Necessary War by Michael Lind, as
well as newspaper and magazine articles contemporary to the war.
professional level.

The editors would like to thank Lt. General Dave Palmer, Dr. Mark

Today we hear a common cry for “not another Vietnam” Moyar, and Dr. Lewis Sorley for being available for