The Role of the Media On September 11 and During the Months That Followed the Attack

The media played a vital part in forming the opinions of the American population both on and after September 11. Appeals to the emotions of post-September 11th America were demonstrated. Through television and print, the media attempted to control the minds of Americans by focusing on George Bush, the FBI, and the CIA, during the day of the attack and shortly after; the USA PATRIOT Act entered the spotlight in the weeks following the attacks.

The media repeatedly used the phrase “high alert” in the days following the attacks. In a short article in the “Washington Post” that was written the night of the attacks, writer, Charles Babington, focused on this phrase. Babington and the media also keyed on words, such as, “stunning”, “chaos”, and “terrorism”. These words seemed to have the greatest impact on Americans. Many Americans were terrified of what might happen next. “I just saw my two towers fall. I’m devastated beyond belief. In many respects this is significantly worse than Pearl Harbor, and we don’t know who the enemy is.” (Lewis Eisenberg, chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey qtd. in Babington). These feelings caused many Americans to desire legislation to preserve their freedom.

Bush stated, “ high-alert status… freedom itself was attacked… freedom will be defended.” (Washington Post) Bush was also using the phrase “high-alert” which was probably to gain support from the American population. Bush realized that America need to take immediate action to prevent future attacks, and he stated, “Terrorism will not stand.” These ploys to gain public support seemed to be an appeal to pathos. Bush was planning for anti-terrorism legislation and by appealing to his audience’s emotions he gained support. Bush used word “will” in almost all of his speeches, this word is very definite and portrays Bush as a strong leader.

As Bush was gaining support, America was dealt another blow, the fear of biological warfare began terrifying Americans. Letters containing anthrax, an acute infectious disease which is caused by spores of the bacteria Bacillus anthracis, were sent throughout New York, New Jersey, Florida, and Washington D.C. On September 24, 2001, MSNBC released a report about the World Health Organization’s belief on anthrax. WHO’s excutive director stated, “The threat of these things is real (MSNBC 1).” A report from MSNBC, the same day, gave a quote from Michael Osterholm, a bioterrorism expert. Osterholm claimed that America was unable to handle the bioterrorism the world is capable of.