In a movement for democracy, students took to the streets protesting. What made this particular protest so intriguing is the massive impact that the media had on the events that took place. In an effort to stir up support within the United States, the students carried signs with American democratic symbols such asThe Goddess of Democracy? and Abraham Lincoln. The students knew that they would not succeed in bargaining with the Chinese government. Their best hope was to gather support worldwide through appealing to the international community, mainly the United States, through use of the media. While these student protests were taking place, the Chinese were expecting a visit from Mikhail Gorbachev. The crisis escalated and after Gorbachev's departure, satellite transmissions were cut off. An important aspect to consider is the Chinese government did not want to violently disperse the student demonstration while the world was watching. Little did they know, but CNN cameramen were bicycling around the square where the massacre took place with 8mm handy-cameras. What in the past would have been an easily suppressed uprising on a local scale has implications on a much larger scale, as the Tiananmen Square Massacre quickly turned into an international situation. CNN had been filming the events as they unfolded, resulting in the Chinese government thereafter walking on thin ice with CNN's international audience. Friedland's example of CNN in the Gulf War tells a similar story. The media was used as a form of diplomatic exchange as well as a strategic tool each side tried to play to its advantage. With technology progressing so rapidly, and states borders falling to increased globalization, the dominant American media was able to play a larger role in the international scene than it may have in the past. Friedland cited Bush accordingly, when Bush declaredI learn more from CNN than I do from the CIA.
