Arlington Cemetery at Center of Controversy Over Media Coverage of Military Funerals | Voice of America - English
Arlington National Cemetery, across the Potomac river from Washington, D.C., is at the center of a controversy over media coverage of military funerals for those killed in the Iraq war.  The complaints over restricted press access have led some to accuse the U.S. government of trying to limit images of the human costs of a war that most Americans now think was a mistake.
ArlingtonNational Cemetery, where America pays tribute to its fallen troops. From the tomb ofthe Unknown Soldier, to the final resting place of prominent Americans such asPresident John F. Kennedy, Arlington Cemetery is hallowed ground that is nowembroiled in a controversy over media access. Press coverage of military funerals is onlypermitted when the grieving families give their consent. But there are complaints that access isbeing restricted, with reporters kept too far away to hear or record thefunerals of those soldiers killed in Iraq. Ami Nieberger-Miller, whose brother Christopher Nieberger waskilled in Iraq a year ago, says her family agreed to media coverage of theburial. But she says she was dismayedby the restrictions. "Itwould not have taken a lot for a microphone to have been run from where themedia were, so that they could hear the eulogy," she said. "It wouldn't have taken much -- not that we wanted them shoutingquestions or running up after us or anything like that. But I did want mybrother's life to be honored." A veteran of the Iraq war who worked foryears in Army public affairs, Gray was fired after only three months on the jobbecause she says she pressed for better press access to military funerals. "It'sbeen my experience that most families want the story of their loved onetold," she said. "They want to feel like thatsacrifice is not for nothing. And theyare beautiful stories, and the way that we bury people at Arlington, whetheryou are for or against the war, whether you believe in the military or not, theway the military treats the dead as they send them off, is a beautiful,beautiful ceremony." It is insection 60 where some of those killed in Iraq are buried. And with more than 4,000 Americansdead so far, some say the government's aim at Arlington is to limit thepublic's exposure to the casualties of war. Thelong-standing Pentagon prohibition against media pictures of returning war deadis cited as another example of this. Images in this report were taken by the U.S. military and permission obtained under the Freedomof Information Act. LucyDalglish, heads the , a group thatworks on behalf of journalists' legal rights. "Itimpinges on press freedom in the sense that it makes it more difficult to coverwhat's going on with the war on terror," Dalglish said. "Certainly, military burials are part of that story. It doesn't tell thewhole story but it tells a very important part of the story. ThePentagon has said little publicly about the matter. An official says Army Secretary Pete Geren is reviewing thepolicy of media access. Spokesman Geoff Morrell was asked about the reviewTuesday. But for AmiNieberger-Miller, a public affairs specialist for a group that supportsmilitary families that have lost loved ones, a lot is at stake. "Ourcountry has sent a group of amazing people overseas and some of them are makingthe ultimate sacrifice," she said. "And they are not just a number in a newspaper with aname. There is a lot more there, and Ithink the American public could learn a lot more about them." For now,many say the public is not, despite the wishes of some of the grievingfamilies.