The War on Two Fronts
The Detroit Free Press has made a strong commitment to covering Michigan's troops as they serve in Iraq and to writing about their families as they struggle back home. The Free Press sent writer Joe Swickard and photojournalist David P. Gilkey to Iraq to cover Michigan's 1st Battalion of the 24th Marine Regiment. Meanwhile, writer John Masson and photojournalist Stephen McGee have covered the Marines' loved ones on the home front. The resulting "Michigan's Band of Brothers" is an impressive look at the different facets of military life. It includes a story about Christmas in Iraq, letters from the troops to their families and coverage of the funeral for a 22-year-old Marine. A highlight of the package is Swickard's "Thanks, Guys, for Keeping us Alive," a personal account of what it's like to be an embedded reporter that contains passages like this one:
So your room has no door because a rocket blast blew it off? No problem. You're grateful for a place to sleep out of the weather. The chow looks a little suspect after an all-day journey through the desert to reach your outpost? You're grateful the guys will share their food with you nonetheless. Crews running late to clean out the Porta-Johns? Say thanks for the hand sanitizer and for having something other than a reeking ditch to relieve yourself.
While I greatly value the work of independent reporters in Iraq, I think the coverage of embedded reporters like Swickard adds a human side to the troops that we wouldn't see otherwise. What do you think? http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=999961113001&template=theme&theme=BANDBROS112006