Wingnut, the Anarchists, and the Power of TV, by Evan Wright

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"Wingnut's Last Day on Earth," my account of radical anarchists who protested the World Trade Organization conference in Seattle, was the first story I was ever assigned that was extensively covered on television. The anarchists themselves provided the necessary photogenic imagery by dressing in militant uniforms of black hoodies and masks, then smashing windows of Starbucks and other chainstores in Seattle. The media loves a riot. As I recount in Hella Nation, I could not get the story assigned until anarchists destroyed some property in front of news cameras.

In writing prose, it's always a struggle to create a narrative. So many details can remain contradictory even after the most vigorous reporting and research that culling out a cohesive and meaningful sequence of events is often a challenge. This was the case with the Seattle riots. 

Television news reporters have it easier insofar as images automatically create a narrative in a viewer's mind. The problem is, the image-driven narrative may not be accurate. In the case of the Seattle riots, televised images of rampaging anarchists told a false story. Most viewers assumed the anarchists started the riots. Having witnessed the event first-hand, as well as interviewed participants, it became clear that police instigated much of the violence, and ironically created the chaos which allowed the anarchists the freedom to begin their destructive rampage.

Powerful as televised images are, they often lead to other sorts of inaccuracies. Since the anarchists who appeared on camera tended to be scruffy and confessed that they were fighting to defend the environment, many viewers and even reporters assumed that anarchists were merely a new strain of angry hippies. Spending time with them, I learned that many were followers of the "Unabomber," Theodore Kaczynski, and as such believed in terrorism--at least theoretically--to advance their cause.

My work on "Wingnut's Last Day on Earth" provided stark insights into the power of television news to completely mislead viewers.   Occasionally people have asked me to carry a video camera when I am on the road reporting a story. I have so far refused, out of my belief that a notepad, pen and tape recorder are more accurate.    

Evan Wright, Hella Nation, Putnam, Penguin Books