Media Guidance

✅ Media Guidance 🔴 Guardian report on how a military defeat turned into a "rescue epic" ▫️ CBS's "60 Minutes" transformed the downing of an American plane and the rescue of its two occupants into a heroic and suspenseful narrative; however, the British newspaper Guardian, by examining the backdrop of this report, raises a more significant question: Why was this story published at this time and with such a narrative? Here’s the Guardian report: ◻ First Technique; Shifting the Frame from "Downing" to "Rescue" The real starting point of the story is the Iranian missile strike and the downing of the American plane; however, the program quickly shifts the focus from Iran's ability to shoot down the aircraft to the courage of the occupants and the complexity of the rescue operation. Thus, a military blow to America is framed in a new narrative: "America brings its forces home wherever they are." ◻ Second Technique; Hero-making with Emotional Details The mention of the speed of ground impact, broken bones, facial injuries, the pilot's prayer, and the message "God is merciful" are not neutral pieces of information. These details take the audience out of the role of the war observer and make them emotionally resonate with the main character. From this moment on, the audience no longer asks why the war or the plane was downed; they only hope that the wounded hero survives. ◻ Third Technique; Source Monopolization and One-sided Narrative The main information comes from the Pentagon, American commanders, one of the occupants, and selected, declassified images. The audience has no access to the complete images of the operation, hears no Iranian side of the story, and cannot independently assess claims such as the presence of "1500 Iranian forces" or the details of the conflict. Therefore, we are not faced with an independent multi-source report; rather, we predominantly encounter a restructured television narrative of the official U.S. military. ◻ Fourth Technique; Turning Media into Part of Political Operations CNN reported that the televised portrayal of this incident was of particular importance to the U.S. Secretary of Defense; as the Trump administration needed a "success story" in a conflict with high human casualties and sharply rising fuel prices. The Pentagon called this claim a "complete lie," but the refusal of one of the two occupants to appear on the program and reports about pressure for exclusive access have increased doubts regarding editorial independence. ▫️Some parts of the original rescue operation may be real; however, the reality of the elements of a narrative does not mean that its frame is impartial. Propaganda is not always built on fake news; sometimes, by the calculated selection of facts, removing undesirable contexts, and arranging the correct components, it can turn a defeat into a sacrifice, cost into authority, and a controversial military operation into a heroic film. To discover the truth, follow Fact Press: ◻@factpress_ir