News releases

March 13, 2008

TO: Reporters, assignment editors
FROM: Liz Beyler, (608) 263-1986, lbkraak@wisc.edu
RE: TIP/PERSPECTIVES ON THE IRAQ WAR FIFTH ANNIVERSARY

With March 19, 2008 marking the fifth anniversary of the U.S. war in Iraq, experts at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are available for comment on different aspects of a war that continues to dominate and divide the American political landscape.

- Jeremi Suri, professor of history, (608) 263-1852, suri@wisc.edu. Suri specializes in the history of U.S. foreign relations. He believes that the Iraq War has damaged America's international standing in the world, but adds that it has also opened some promising opportunities for change at home and abroad. Another area of Suri's expertise is in protest movements. He says protests, such as the ones organized by Cindy Sheehan and others, have not ended the war, but have served the purpose of discrediting the Bush administration and many of its war claims.

- Ken Mayer, professor of political science, (608) 263-2286, kmayer@polisci.wisc.edu. Mayer can discuss the effects of the war on U.S. presidential power, war powers and the political impact the war has had on America and its upcoming presidential election.

- David Morgan, professor of history and religious studies, (608) 263-1826, domorgan@wisc.edu. An expert on Middle Eastern affairs and Middle Eastern history, Morgan can offer his thoughts on the Iraq war's impact on U.S. counterterrorism efforts in Afghanistan and on its relations with Iran.

- James Baughman, professor of journalism, (608) 263-3390, (608) 263-4898, baughman@facstaff.wisc.edu. Baughman can comment on newspaper and TV coverage of the war and how it has changed since the war began. He says reporting started to turn negative soon after the fall of Baghdad, but it was not, as some people assume, due to news media "bias," but by events themselves. Specifically, Baughman cites the failure of the U.S. government to plan adequately for Iraq's occupation as a major driver of negative stories. Baughman says most major news organizations have curtailed their overall reportage of the war itself, mainly because of the immense expense and the great physical risks reporters and supporting personnel were asked to assume. "We should be grateful that some large news organizations continue to spend heavily on war coverage, and that many journalists, including some based in Wisconsin, are willing to risk their lives to cover this difficult conflict," says Baughman.

- Marvin Birnbaum, an emeritus professor at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, director of Emergency Medical Services at UW Hospital and Clinics, and president of the World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine, (608) 263-7094, mlb@medicine.wisc.edu. Based on information from the global organization, Birnbaum can comment on some of the issues regarding medical and public health efforts in Iraq.

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