In the midst of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, many social media users claimed that Western media had been racist in their reporting on the conflict. There are opinions on both sides of the debate on racism, with NATO and the United States at the center. Some Twitter users claimed that the media coverage of the conflict zones in Asia and Africa did not receive as many images as the European conflict. However, others argued that the invasion of Ukraine was not the right time to bring it up. Alan MacLeod, a journalist, tweeted a thread of alleged racist media coverage of the Ukraine crisis. The thread confronts the allegations against several leading news outlets, including the BBC, CBS News, Al Jazeera, BFM TV, The Daily Telegraph and ITV (UK).
Ukraine’s Deputy Chief Prosecutor David Sakvarelidze said in BBC footage: “It’s very emotional for me because I see how they kill Europeans with blue eyes and blonde hair. This particular statement sparked outrage on Twitter. Here is the thread from MacLeod.
[Thread] The most racist Ukrainian coverage on TV News. 1. The BBC: “It’s very moving for me because I see Europeans with blue eyes and blonde hair being killed.” – Deputy Chief Prosecutor of Ukraine David Sakvarelidze pic.twitter.com/m0LB0m00Wg
—Alan MacLeod (@AlanRMacLeod) February 27, 2022
MacLeod also tweeted about other cases of alleged racism in Western media coverage.
Unfortunately, most calls for help are framed as a “they’re not like everyone else, they’re white” argument, as my thread shows.https://t.co/GfSSrrEpBW—Alan MacLeod (@AlanRMacLeod) February 27, 2022
Here’s a counter narrative from a genocide researcher and expert on Twitter, specifically on the cover of Time.
Let’s talk about this Time coverage, which is not about the NATO bombing in 1999 but was published on September 26, 1995. This bombing happened in Bosnia and was an air campaign led by the army of the Republika Srpska. This bombardment occurred after Markale and Serbrenica. https://t.co/wIk7qASRZU– Arnesa Buljusmic-Kustura (@Rrrrnessa) February 28, 2022
Recently, an old op-ed titled “In the long run, wars make us safer and richer,” which appeared in a news post in April 2014, was dug up by Twitter users and is being heavily criticized. In this article, the author of the article asks: “So yes, war is hell, but have you considered the alternatives? He claims that through conflict, humanity has created larger, more organized societies that have reduced the risk of violent death for their members and ensured a higher standard of living, hence the titular claim. Twitter users vehemently opposed the piece.
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