The Effects of Media and Democracy in the Trial of Bowe Bergdahl
Since army solider Bowe Bergdahl’s returned to the United States he has become a figure of much controversy. His disappearance from his unit in Afghanistan has been commented on by high ranking politicians, media outlets and has been the season-long subject of a hit podcast called Serial. His trial for the charges brought against him has been postponed multiple times and his attorney’s now question if it is possible for Bergdahl to receive a fair trial. Since his release from the Taliban-aligned Haqqani network in May of 2014, what role has communication played in Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl’s right to a fair trial?
Bowe Bergdahl was a sergeant in the U.S. military. He was deployed and stationed at a post in Eastern Afghanistan near the town of Yahya Kheyl.[1] Bergdahl was largely doing humanitarian work at his post, such as handing out coloring books to the town’s children.[2] He decided to desert from his post, which is illegal under the rules of the army. Upon abandoning his post he was captured by the Taliban and taken prisoner. He was held by the Taliban and tortured for five years. This makes him one of the longest U.S. war prisoner in history. A Wikileaks page was released that detailed Bergdahl’s situation. This was a massive occurrence in the Bergdahl situation. The Wikileaks divulged that six Americans had died trying to rescue him and several others were injured.[3] The Obama Administration negotiated a deal with his captors.[4] In return for his freedom, the U.S. released five Taliban members from Guantanamo Bay. Two of the people released were high-up Taliban leaders.[5] This was highly controversial due to the fact that the U.S. has a long-standing history of refusing to negotiate with terrorists.
Upon his release and prior to his return to America, Bergdahl was appointed an army attorney, Eugene Fidell, who he met with while he was being treated for his injuries in Germany.[6] Fidell transcribed all of Bergdahl’s accounts from his deployment, abandonment of his post, torture and everything in between. The document is sealed except for some lines and sections from it which have been released. Controversy struck when the nation learned that Bergdahl was captured due to his own abandonment of his post. It was so shocking in fact that there celebration was planned for his homecoming in his hometown of Hailey, Idaho but it was cancelled when news broke. Berdahl stated that he left his post because he was trying to gain attention from higher up army people to bring attention to poor troop leadership. He said that his leaders were unnecessarily endangering him and his fellow platoon. Bergdahl faces charges of desertion and endangering fellow soldiers and faces a potential sentence of life in prison. His trial has been postponed and questioned several times. It is set to begin on May 15, 2017.
The extent to which media’s role has shaped this trial is morally conflicting. This case drew a wide audience with a range of opinions. The media’s coverage of the case has changed directions multiple times. To what extent will the public rely on the coverage being provided by the media rather than the court documents and factual evidence of the case? To be damned in the court of public opinion, but proven innocent in the court of law will change the rest of Bergdahl’s life which has already been set on a very public stage. The news outlets providing this information may be reporting the news without bias, but they might be pushing their own agenda. Even the choices of who media outlets choose to interview can show bias. How often are they interviewing men who served with Bergdahl versus family members of those that died versus friends and family of Bergdahl? These small biases shape how Bergdahl is perceived.
The other moral question is why and how people of power are using their voices to influence this case. This is both a moral question to be asked of those in power and also a question for the media outlets that are reporting on these comments. The voices of people like President Donald Trump and Senator John McCain are being widely heard despite their distance from actual involvement in the case. From a perspective of integral ecology, the connected actions of everyone involved affect Bergdahl. His rise from a single soldier to a symbol for desertion or whistle blowing is largely due to the sensationalism of the media. His actions affected those serving at the same time he did, but they will also affect policy for those serving after him as his punishment will likely be held up as an example. At the same time, the actions of the larger media are affecting Bergdahl and the outcome of his trial which is a punishment to be served only by himself. The formation of public opinion proves that in this case, knowledge is social. The social discourse being sparked by the media and other conversations about Bergdahl is bringing more depth to the questions that are being asked.
Two major political figures made controversial comments on the Bergdahl case that then affected the case as a whole. Donald Trump made statements numerous times during his campaign suggesting that Bergdahl is a traitor who should have been executed. “We’re tired of Sgt. Bergdahl, who’s a traitor, a no-good traitor, who should have been executed.” Trump’s comments were then used in a pretrial hearing to decide whether Bergdahl could get a fair trial. Bergdahl’s lawyers argued that “the comments violate their client’s due process rights and that the appearance of such unfairness (by the commander and chief) can theoretically derail a military case.” Despite the defense’s arguments it was decided by the court that Bergdahl could still get a fair trial. By making those comments Trump was aiming to put Clinton and Obama in a negative light. His agenda amounted to simple political gain. He took advantage of the opportunity to make Clinton look bad.
John McCain made comments on the case as well but not quite as harsh. McCain said, “Bergdahl was a clear deserter and if it comes out there is no punishment, we’re going to have a hearing in the Senate Armed Services Committee.” After the comments were made, Bergdahl’s lawyers accused McCain of improperly trying to influence the outcome of a major military prosecution. McCain’s agenda was to look out for other prisoners of war and make sure that they aren’t seen in a bad light. As a former prisoner of war himself he wanted to ensure that generally they aren’t perceived the same way Bergdahl is. He also wanted to make sure Bergdahl didn’t get away with this in general.
The news has been a source for up to date information as the case has progressed. It’s agenda can be characterized as reactionary, by responding to what’s happened as soon as it’s happened. The news deliberately doesn’t make any judgements calls on what has occurred revolving around the case. It just serves as a source for the public to be aware of what is happening.
A source of media that is more opinion oriented would be the Serial Podcast. Serial is a podcast with over 40 million listeners that tells one true story over the course of an eleven episode season. The creators purposefully tell stories that are controversial and provoke in depth discussion. In Bergdahl’s story they go over the different reactions to the story and use in depth sources like Mike Boal, a director and the only person that has scored an interview with Bergdahl since his return. Most importantly, Serial discusses both sides of the discussion but deliberately doesn’t take sides. Through their investigative reporting they aim to let their listeners decide on what side they’re on.
Although there has been a lot of talk from a wide variety of sources about Bergdahl’s case, almost none of it has come from Bergdahl himself. Since his return, he has refused to speak with anyone about his experiences except for Mark Boal. Boal is a prominent Hollywood movie producer known for war movies, such as the Hurt Locker. The Serial Podcast was able to gain permission to use a few taped conversations between Boal and Bergdahl but other than that the public has had no access to Bergdahl’s side of things. This means that all communication about the trial has come from third-party source. This not only brings further questioning to Bergdahl’s character but also to the authenticity of the coverage that the public has received about his story.
Since Bergdahl’s trial has not yet taken place, it is impossible to say if the trial itself is fair. It can be said, however, the events in relation to his trial so far have not been fair. Overall media has played a massive role in affecting the fairness of Bergdahl’s trial. The trial has been postponed, questioned and even filed for mistrial over the past few years. Media coverage and celebrities have greatly influenced the progression of his trial, which is unfair. For example, the level of court for his persecution changed upon McCain and Trump’s comments on his charges. A fair system and trial would not allow for this effect.
Ultimately, Bergdahl’s case also reflects a theme of the overall relationship between media and democracy. It shows that democracy does not stand unaffected and it is not immune to outside influencers. The democratic process can be altered and affected by outside factors and sources. Possibly the biggest reflection that can be taken from Bergdahl’s case, however, is power of people’s voices in democracy. Democracy is based on giving everyone an equal voice and an equal opportunity to speak up. However, it is clear that the voices of prominent celebrities and societal influencers speak louder when it comes to our democracy. It appears that their voices mean more than those of the general public, and there inlies the problem.
[1] https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2016/01/13/how-bowe-bergdahls-disappearance-created-ripple-effects-in-the-afghanistan-war/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2016/01/13/how-bowe-bergdahls-disappearance-created-ripple-effects-in-the-afghanistan-war/
[2] http://www.newsweek.com/2016/02/05/serial-bowe-bergdahl-mystery-pow-419962.html
[3] http://time.com/2809352/bowe-bergdahl-deserter-army-taliban/
[4] http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/19/us/bowe-bergdahl-fast-facts/
[5] http://www.militarytimes.com/story/military/2015/05/27/a-look-at-the-5-taliban-figures-exchanged-for-sgt-bowe-bergdahl/28001797/
[6] https://www.democracynow.org/2015/3/30/attorney_for_bowe_bergdahl_army_report
8http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/02/13/bergdahl-hearing-expected-to-focus-on-criticism-from-trump.htm