Letters: Journalist's Iraq Assignment Ends

from National Public Radio

Listeners respond to NPR Producer Tom Bullock's essay on the end of his Iraq assignment. He says when he arrived in 2003 it was safe to go get a haircut. Shops reminded him of the Andy Griffith Show. But a degree of hope evaporated before his departure after 21 tours in 2007.

Shrikanth Gopalakrishnan, who listens to Morning Edition on WBEZ in Chicago, says: "Kudos to Mister Bullock for combining the elements of good reporting while giving the listeners a glimpse into the personal world of the reporter."

But the commentary elicited this from Lynn Book of Winston-Salem, North Carolina: "The nostalgic bent to the whole piece was off-putting and offensive given the ridiculous assertion that there was a "Golden Era" in Iraq at the beginning of the U.S.-led invasion that was nothing but destructive. For Bullock to assume his glib stance after 21 assignments there is a mockery of the tragedy that is real and longstanding in Iraq."

Another listener, Gabe Joseph of Seattle, called it the most meaningful commentary he's heard on Iraq: "A daily news report where you hear about a bombing just doesn't really fill in all the details for what's it like for people on the ground."

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Broadcast Dates

• Morning Edition, October 25, 2007