Humanitarian Crises and Intervention
Reassessing the Impact of Mass Media
Walter C. Soderlund ,  E. Donald Briggs ,  Kai Hildebrandt ,  Abdel Salam Sidahmed
Hardback: 978 1 56549 262 2
Price: $75.00  

Paperback: 978 1 56549 261 5
Price: $29.95  

Publisher: Kumarian Press
September 2008 , 380 pp., 6" x 9"
tables & maps
As the Cold War began to wind down in the early '90s, former colonies were besieged by a string of humanitarian crises that killed millions of people and forced many millions more to leave their homes and livelihoods. A cruel paradox was revealed: just as the concept of “Responsibility to Protect” human rights was challenging the principle of “State Sovereignty”, no state with the capacity to do so was actually willing to intervene in a crisis based solely on humanitarian grounds.

This book takes a unique and comprehensive look at how the international community, led by the US, responded to ten humanitarian crises of the last decade and how major media outlets played a role in influencing (or failing to influence) action. Crises examined include Liberia, East Timor, Somalia, Sudan, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Burundi, Angola, Haiti, and the Congo. Soderlund and Briggs apply the same analytic method to each case to discover why the international community was unwilling, time and time again, to address this new brand of conflict that appeared at the time.


Table of Contents:
List of Tables and Maps; Preface; 1) Introduction: The Problem and Research Methods—Walter C. Soderlund, E. Donald Briggs and Kai Hildebrandt; 2) Liberia, 1990: ECOMOG I, “Operation Liberty,” UMOMIL—Walter C. Soderlund; 3) Somalia, 1992: UNOSOM I, UNITAF, “Operation Restore Hope,” UNOSOM II—E. Donald Briggs and Walter C. Soderlund; 4) Sudan, 1992: Humanitarian Relief Efforts Confront an Intractable Civil War—Abdel Salam Sidahmed and Walter C. Soderlund; 5) Rwanda, 1994: UNAMIR I, UNAMIR II, and “Operation Turquoise”—Walter C. Soderlund and E. Donald Briggs; 6) Haiti, 1994: “Operation Restore (Uphold) Democracy,” UNMIH—Walter C. Soderlund and E. Donald Briggs; 7) Burundi, 1996: United Nations and African Intervention Initiatives Falter—Walter C. Soderlund; 8) Zaire (Democratic Republic of Congo) 1996: “Operation Assurance” The Intervention that Never Was—Walter C. Soderlund and E. Donald Briggs; 9) Sierra Leone, 1997: ECOMOG II, UNOMSIL, UNAMSIL—Walter C. Soderlund; 10) Angola, 1999: 1000 UN Observers Removed, 30 UN Civilian Observers Returned—E. Donald Briggs and Walter C. Soderlund; 11; East Timor (Timor-Leste) 1999: INTERFET, “Operation Warden”—Walter C. Soderlund and E. Donald Briggs; 12) Conclusion: Assessing the Comparative Impact of Mass Media on Intervention Decision-making—Walter C. Soderlund and E. Donald Briggs; Contributors; References; Index


Related titles:
Teachers - Request Exam Copy Excerpt
Share
Reviews & Endorsements:
"Writings on how the United States responded to humanitarian crises in East Timor, Liberia, Somalia, Sudan, and other countries."
- The Chronicle of Higher Education
"What would explain the poor track record of the international community when it comes to intervention against gross violations of human rights in Third World societies? Using ingenious rank-order indicators, Soderlund and his colleagues examine the severity of the problem, the risks of intervening, and the strength of media advocacy to provide a thoughtful and thorough analysis. Informative, moving, and challenging."
- J. David Singer, Professor Emeritus of Political Science, University of Michigan