Media and Detainee Rights
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Neutral Coverage: Articles were coded as “neutral” if they appeared to report on
detainee rights without direction. The content of the articles included equal information
on the benefits of POW status along with the dangers poised by the prisoners.
In order to better explain the use of the terms “favorable,” “unfavorable,” and
“neutral,” the following are specific examples of an article representing each coding
possibility. Word choice, placement in headline or first paragraph, and balancing
coverage were considered when choosing the article’s direction. The following key
phrases, however, were the general deciding factor for each individual article.
Charlotte Observer
Favorable: “Four members of the International Committee of the Red Cross arrived
Thursday to meet with U.S. officials and interview dozens of al-Qaida and Taliban
prisoners being held at the U.S. military outpost at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The visit was
the first by independent experts at Camp X-ray, which human rights advocates say
provides substandard conditions for the prisoners. U.S. officials say the tight security is
necessary and that prisoners' rights are not violated” (“Red Cross checking Cuba Jail
Prisoners” January 18, 2002).
This article calls into question the treatment of the Taliban and al-Qaida prisoners
at the hands of their American jailers. While the article does not call for the extension of
POW status to these prisoners, it does suggest that conditions at Camp X-ray are second-
rate and must be investigated. This sentiment coincides with the feelings of Powell and
others who opposed the Bush administration’s labeling of the detainees as “unlawful
combatants.”
Convention