The clash of war correspondents in Hanoi

Abstract

The presented historical essay is dedicated to the events of the Vietnam War (1955–1975), in which the author participated as a war correspondent of TASS. From the perspective of an eyewitness, he describes realities of the journalist's work in Hanoi, from where correspondents from different countries sent information reports on the fighting. The essay shows vivid examples of the role that interpersonal relationships played in the international journalistic environment and how they were reflected in the personal fate of the author. The article describes in detail how the situation in Hanoi changed from a local perspective during different periods of the war and what factors influenced the promotion of correspondence in the USSR and competing countries. Of particular value are the unique photographs from the author's archive, which illustrate the narrative and make the material especially interesting from the point of view of history, including the history of the development of the Russian media, as well as in parallel with modernity.

Keywords

• vietnam war
• tass
• vietnam solidarity movement
• bombing of hanoi