Public Knowledge of Events in Iraq Dropping

[babylonsister]

Public Is Less Aware of Iraq Casualties, Study Finds

By Karen DeYoung
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, March 13, 2008; Page A12


Twenty-eight percent of the public is aware that nearly 4,000 U.S. personnel have died in Iraq over the past five years, while nearly half thinks the death tally is 3,000 or fewer and 23 percent think it is higher, according to an opinion survey released yesterday.

The survey, by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, found that public awareness of developments in the Iraq war has dropped precipitously since last summer, as the news media have paid less attention to the conflict. In earlier surveys, about half of those asked about the death tally responded correctly.

Related Pew surveys have found that the number of news stories devoted to the war has sharply declined this year, along with professed public interest. "Coverage of the war has been virtually absent," said Pew survey research director Scott Keeter, totaling about 1 percent of the news hole between Feb. 17 and 23.

The Iraq-associated median for 2007, he said, was 15 percent of all news stories, with major spikes when President Bush announced a "surge" in forces in January of that year and when Gen. David H. Petraeus, the U.S. commander in Iraq, testified before Congress in September.

"We try not to make any causal statements about the relationship between the absence of news and what the public knows," Keeter said. "But there's certainly a correlation between the two. People are not seeing news about fatalities, and there isn't much in the news about the war, whether it be military action or even political discussion related to it."

more...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/12/AR2008031203706.html?nav=rss_print/asection

[predfan]

1. Lack of investment creates a lack of interest......

If you don't have money in the stock market, you probably don't pay much attention to the DJA. Likewise a lack of investment in our military by the vast, vast majority of Americans. Guarantee you those military families know how many fatalities there are everyday. Now, politicize the efforts ( "It's well worth the loss of these brave American heros to keep the enemy there instead of here! God Bless our beloved Commander in Chief!!" How many times have you heard that, usually be folks who not only don't have loved ones in harms way, but don't even KNOW anyone who's serving) "Good" Republicans ( oxymoron, I know) can't even acknowlege the losses without being acccused of being unpatriotic by their buddies.

[babylonsister]

2. The lack of news being reported isn't helping either. nt

[spanone]

3. lack of reporting...media blackout....