The 21st century has witnessed its fair share of conflict. The world has seen civil wars in countries such as Syria and Yemen as well as the American involvement in the conflicts of Iraq and Afghanistan. The Russo-Ukraine war is the most recent addition to this list. What the media has shown us through their coverage of these events is that the west views victims of war differently depending on where the conflict is taking place.
Media coverage at the start of the war represents a line of thought in the western world that must be addressed. The outpouring of sympathy that has been seen for the Ukrainian people is of course something that should be encouraged. The problem with these sympathies is the reasonings and moral groundings behind them. Many media companies have chosen to focus on the fact that Ukrainian people are white Europeans living in a civilized country.
CBS reporter Charlie D’Agata illuminates this point in a segment at the start of the war. D’Agata stated that Ukraine “isn’t like Iraq or Afghanistan, that has seen conflict raging for decades.” This particular point is factual. Ukraine has been experiencing conflict since 2014 when Russia annexed Crimea, but mathematically speaking that doesn’t add up to “decades”. His insights, however, became even more troublesome as he continued: “This is a relatively civilized, relatively European—I have to choose those words carefully, too—city, where you wouldn’t expect that or hope that [war is] going to happen.”
War and the pain it causes isn’t a condition unique to a particular part of the world. A light dive into world history makes this clear. Conflict doesn’t solely take place on the basis of how “civilized” a country is either. This oversimplification of how war starts has some incredibly racist undertones.
For one, the continent of Europe does not have a monopoly on civilized populations and using this word to define populations is in itself problematic. This statement also completely disregards how western countries have actively participated in the destabilization of certain parts of the world D’Agata would consider uncivilized. Furthermore, to “hope” that it wouldn’t happen in Europe because it is “civilized” is a saddening and disappointing sentiment. It’s a healthy practice to hope that war doesn’t occur at all no matter the socio-economic context of a given area.
D’Agata’s case is just one of many. All of these cases illustrate the fact that the western mindset still believes white lives are somehow inherently more significant. An article in the Daily Telegraph stating that “war is no longer something visited upon impoverished and remote populations” encapsulates the basis of why Americans and Europeans find this so shocking. It also displays how intellectually deprived our news outlets can sometimes be when it comes to history.
A more alarming statement was made on the BBC by the former deputy general prosecutor of Ukraine, explaining his frustration in seeing “European people with blonde hair and blue eyes being killed every day.”
It is troubling to see the people of one’s community being killed, but the specific characteristics he labeled show that his attention is solely on those that are white. This thought process is as problematic as it is racist, especially once it is understood that Africans living in Ukraine were prevented from fleeing the country. It is disappointing that the BBC refrained from addressing the content of their guest’s statement further.
Russia is a nuclear superpower, and the threat of spillover into NATO countries is significant. This possibility became especially realized once a Russian airstrike took place 15 miles from the Polish border. It is important to note, however, that all wars are significant in their own respects, and bringing attention to them has the ability to create awareness that could potentially lead to humanitarian aid and diplomatic intervention.
As it stands today there are currently 21 armed conflicts taking place across the globe. Many of these conflicts are barely, if not ever, discussed in popular western media. Yemen, for example, has been suffering from a civil war since 2014 in which an estimated 20.7 million people are in need of humanitarian aid and around 111,000 have been killed. As we have seen with Ukraine, news coverage has the ability to invoke empathy and inspire people across the world to find ways in which to help. Bringing attention to Yemen could potentially do the same.
The acceptance of refugees from Ukraine can be seen as a positive side-effect of the amount of attention the conflict has garnered. The UK government is beginning to offer citizens $456 a month to house refugees under a plan labeled “Homes for Ukraine”. This happened after all sides of the UK parliament criticized the government for handing out visas to only a small portion of Ukrainian applicants.
This case specific immigration policy is a drastic shift away from the UK’s stance on refugees seeking asylum from the middle east. In 2015, only 216 Syrian refugees were allowed visas. The prime minister at the time, David Cameroon, reassured “his anxious public that the total number won’t rise above 1,000”. This double-standard is a saddening reminder that non-European populations are still viewed in a different light.
Media coverage on the Russo-Ukraine war illuminates that a double-standard is at play. This can be seen in the rhetoric of newscasters and their guests, as well as actual policy decisions. Without acknowledging these issues, we fail to recognize the humanity of people who are suffering from violence across the globe.
This article is in no way an attempt to undermine the suffering of the Ukrainian people. What this article is attempting to do is bring to light the media’s harmful rhetoric surrounding non-European conflicts.
War is the ugliest, most brutal substance humans can produce. The death and suffering people are experiencing in Ukraine are also being experienced in countries such as Yemen and Mexico. Foster and act on the sympathies held for Ukraine so that those same feelings can be applied and put to use in any instance where people are suffering from violence.
