Reflections on the D-Day Anniversary, Iraq and the German Media

(By Ray D.)

Looking back at this past D-Day weekend, it was interesting to note how even left-wing German media carefully avoided making a political football out of the anniversary. Both STERN and SPIEGEL featured large factual articles complemented by graphics giving readers an accurate historic overview of the events of June 6, 1944. STERN ran an article with a panoramic, two-page photo of St. Lô, France after it was bombed with the title-line: “First bombed, then liberated: entire regions of Normandy were devastated by Allied bombs.” SPIEGEL noted:

“11,912 tons of bombs were dropped on D-Day alone on German bunkers and so-called nests of resistance on the coast and inland – that was the approximate equivalent of the bomb tonnage with which the Allies bombed the metropolis of Hamburg to rubble in 1943.”

A little over one year ago, on 24 March 2003 at the height of the Iraq war, SPIEGEL ran the following cover:

"Bombing Terror for Freedom: America's War Against Saddam”

In the lead article, SPIEGEL compared the bombing of Baghdad to that of Dresden in 1945:

“Many observers were reminded of Dresden as the pictures of unbridled explosive power and merciless destructive force were broadcast live around the world. Just as in 1945, when around 35,000 people died, now bombing terror was being unleashed on the banks of the Tigris for freedom.”

SPIEGEL went on to present the counter-argument that back then, “dumb bombs” were used and in the Iraq conflict “smart bombs,” with greater precision, were being used which saved lives. But then SPIEGEL returned to its old arguments:

“First after the end of the fighting can it be shown what the truth really is about the false claim made in Afghanistan, during the Balkan conflicts and even already in 1991, that war can be conducted with precise weapons in a way which keeps civilian casualties and damages to a minimum. However, the pictures from Baghdad from last Friday night made it clear without a doubt: A tool of pure horror, even the most accurate bomb is unholy intimidation when it lands in the middle of the civilian population whose protection is one of the foremost goals of international law.”

In other words, only a perfect war in which there are never mistakes, never malfunctions and never civilian casualties would be consistent with "international law" (something those darn Yankees are always treading underfoot) and therefore acceptable to SPIEGEL. The alternative, decades of continued fascism and genocide under Saddam and sons, would have apparently been a better “moral” solution for the magazine. The fact that the Iraqi military (just as the Taliban before it) often intentionally placed its equipment, soldiers and vehicles near civilian installations to protect themselves from bombing, thereby greatly endangering the civilian population, was never mentioned in the article.

So in these two situations we see two very different journalistic approaches. For D-Day, the bombing and destruction used to defeat Nazi fascism is rightfully presented as having been a legitimate and essential part of the liberation of Europe. SPIEGEL’s front cover says it all: “The Landing: When the Americans Saved Europe”

A year before, the (by comparison infinitely less destructive) bombing of Iraq and toppling of the Saddam regime was presented as “bombing terror.” America was cynically attacked for thinking it could possibly bomb a country into freedom. Dresden, seen as an excess of the Allies, was compared to Baghdad, which served the dual purpose of undermining the legitimacy of the US bombing of Iraq while presenting Germans in the victim-role in World War II.

It is in these two conflicting journalistic approaches that we see the fundamental contradiction in the German media’s thought process.

Comments

[Downer]

Very great analysis! Thanks :-)

[Sandy P]

--so-called nests of resistance on the coast and inland --

So-called?

I wonder why they were "so-called" possibly because soldiers were shooting at the allies?

[George M]

Both NBC and History Chanal ran the story of Grenier, a villiage that lies near St. Mere Eglise.

Botom line: The Americans landed 20 kilometers from their objective. The villiage helped the Americans by feeding them and by retrieving their heavy weapons out of the local swamp. The Americans killed over 500 Waffen SS before withdrawing. The SS retaliated by killing 70 American wounded soldiers who were left behind and by murdering the villiage priests and their house keepers.

I don't think Spiegel will run any stories about Grenier...It makes the treatment of Iraqi prisoners by the dog leash girl, Lanny England, look like a Madonna MTV video in comparison.

[George M]

Oh by the way....

St Lo was bombed one month after Normandy. The reason St Lo was bombed was to allow General Patton's U.S. Thrid Army to break through the German lines and surround Von Runstedt's Army Group West.

The breakout was a total success. Several German armored divisions were aniliated by the bombing. 250,000 Germans soldiers were killed or captured.

Unfortunately, Montgomery's British and Canadian Army was not able to breakout of Caan. This prevented the Germans from being entirely encircled. Approximately another 250,000 German soldiers were able to escape and fight another day, prolonging the war for 6 more months.

The breakout of St Lo has been deemed Germany's Stalingrad West by many historians.

[WhatDoIKnow]

I wonder why they were "so-called" possibly because soldiers were shooting at the allies?

Probably because not enough Allies were killed.

Hello!
I realy have been very happy living here in Germany these last 13 years as a civilian and enjoyed my 6 years here as a GI
And maybe I´m getting too cynical in my old age. BUT! I´m getting so damn tired of hearing about the liberation of Germany. As I have always understood it (and I could be wrong), the OPPRESSED are liberated and the OPPRESSORS are conquered.
Am I missing something here or is history being revised??
Secondly, is it true that more Poles landed at Normandy than French? I read that once during the 50th D-day anniversary. But I can´t remeber where. Were the Poles even invited this time. I mean if Gerd can come then why not our other allies who actualy fought there on our side?

Doug

[Paul13]

When I saw this SPIEGEL title I had the feeling that they start to get scared of their own propaganda campaign. It looks to me as if they realized that the current anti-American hysteria in Germany is starting to get out of control and they wanted to step a bit on the brake, just in case the whole thing should backfire. This would also have the advantage that now they can always say "Oh, were not biased against the US, didn't you see how friendly we reported about D-Day?"

[Downer]

Nato: Interview mit Generalsekretär Jaap de Hoop Scheffer über die Rolle des Bündnisses in Afghanistan, im Irak und auf dem Balkan im SPIEGEL 25/2004 - 14.06.2004:

Stichwort Kosovo:

SPIEGEL: Es ist kein Erfolg der Nato in Sicht. Insoweit haben wir eine parallele Lage zu Afghanistan. Die Propaganda behauptet, man habe alles im griff, doch unter der Oberfläche schwelen die schweren Konflikte weiter.

de Hoop Scheffer: Damit bin ich nicht einverstanden. Man braucht eine politische Lösung, für die sehr viele Akteure zusammenarbeiten müssen. Die Nato ist vor Ort, um so gut wie möglich ein ruhiges Umfeld zu schaffen - jene Ruhe, ohne die es keine politische Lösung gibt.

"Die Propaganda behauptet" - wahrlich, das ist Journalismus, wie er in der Bibel steht! Toll!