Reporting from the Front Line: Journalists Get Drilled

FORT MEADE, Md. -- The orange and red oak leaves are falling in this eerie forest setting. On a trail well-worn by the footsteps of commando boots, the atmosphere is sliced open by a rush of soldiers dodging fallen branches and land mines. A captured press photographer waits silently behind enemy lines to be saved. His rescuers approach cautiously, every step and broken branch a possible alert to an enemy unseen.

This is Ft. Meade, Md. But for this 72-hour simulation exercise it is Iraq, the world's most dangerous country.

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The death toll of journalists in Iraq has been on the rise and the U.S. military has begun to take steps to inform and prepare their soldiers.

The Committee to Protect Journalists released in December 2007 its index of the most dangerous countries for journalists. Number one on their list was Iraq where 32 journalists died in 2007 alone.

Despite the loss of life, U.S. military officials say safety is a top priority for their soldiers and the media. Under the leadership of Sergeant Robert Hyatt, new practices have recently been implemented at Fort Meade that take aim at safety issues.

“When I got to the school, I noticed there was a lack of real-life education in place to handle media relations," said Hyatt. “My students were out training, physically at eight in the morning, and then were in class until five, sometimes six or even seven at night."

“The breakdown between field training and class didn’t make sense. I combined the two," Hyatt said.

Sergeant Hyatt became the Director of the Media Affairs training program three months ago and made key changes to the training curriculum. Hyatt now brings the soldiers out into the field to simulate war situations and invites journalists to train for future interactions.

Hyatt said his operation simulations have a realistic approach that will prepare his students for war and increase the safety of embedded journalists.

During the training, student soldiers assume the ranks of their superior officers in high-pressure situations that create a hypothetical worst day in Iraq.

“It’s about throwing things at them, keeping them moving. This isn’t the average day in Iraq, but hopefully it will be their worst. Its all about the preparation,” said Parrish.

The experience that soldiers and journalists can receive in these rehearsals is valuable, said CPJ spokesman Andrew Levinson. He said although the number of American journalist deaths in Iraq has gone down significantly, the overall number of deaths of reporters has not decreased.

“We noticed a trend in Iraq over the last few years about deaths of journalists in Iraq. Although the number is extremely high, the number of American journalists is going down,” he said.

Levinson said the number of Iraqi reporters working for both foreign and local press outlets has increased in the past three years. For Parrish, this is a problem. He said the Iraqi reporters aren’t dying while they are with the troops, but once they leave the U.S. Army’s protection. He said the higher safety results for American journalists can be attributed, in part, to training programs like the one here at Fort Meade.

Student journalist Deanna LeBlanc, 18, said that the training she received at Fort Meade has given her an education that the University of Maryland never could.

“I think every journalist should have to do this. Go through this experience, and communicate with the soldiers. I got hands-on knowledge I can bring with me into the field,” said LeBlanc.

Leblanc said that the time spent in the simulated exercise gave her a new perspective and appreciation for media relations, and if she becomes a war correspondent, might save her life.