Liam Kennedy, the author of “Soldier photography: visualizing the war in Iraq”, has crafted a thorough argument about the impacts of digital dissemination of real-war by soldiers. Based on the war between Afghanistan and Iraq, Kennedy states that “The rapid developments in digital media technologies, contemporaneous with the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, have facilitated the explosion of imagery documenting violent international conflict and the real time experiences of warfare normally beyond the gaze of the media and of their audiences” (817-818). In order to add credibility to his claim and to provide his readers a clear direction about the topic, Kennedy incorporates a variety of reliable primary sources. However, with sighs of political bias, Kennedy fails to balance the contradictory point of view in his argument; as a result, such loophole reduces the effectiveness of the entire paper.
In attempt to analyze how “the rapid developments in digital media technologies” have raised influence in the public, Kennedy uses plenty of quotes from blogs of soldiers as his primary sources of evidence. The insertions of first-hand experiences from famous officials and on-site soldiers provide the audience a more persuasive idea about such rising influence of soldier media, which makes his argument effective. However, signs of political bias or fallacies can be found throughout Kennedy’s paper. His repetition of the phrase “people running around digital words” from Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld’s speech indicates his supports for Rumsfeld’s opinion about “unbelievable photos” and “against the law” (817). In other words, Kennedy agrees with the political view that only information recognized by government is credentialed. At the close of his paper, Kennedy further demonstrates such political bias, stating that “the historical significance of soldier photography” is “mundane” and “ordinary” rather than “controversial or revelatory” (833).
In conclusion, Kennedy has done an excellent job in providing evidences for his argument. While he effectively illustrates the “reality-effect” of digital world related to war, Kennedy’s bias demonstrates an act of impulse, reducing the effectiveness of his argument. I strongly suggest Kennedy to be hold a fair and balanced perspective in writing his future papers in order to make his arguments more effective.
Works Cited
Kennedy, Liam. “Soldier photography: visualizing the war in Iraq”. Review of
International Studies 35.4 (2009): 817-833. Print.
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