ABSTRACT
This concluding chapter draws together the research findings of each case study and offers conclusions regarding both the conditions under which news media coverage influences policy-making (as indicated by the limited test of the policy-media interaction model) and the central research question, whether or not the news media influence decisions to intervene during humanitarian crises. In order to provide an assessment of the relationship between the CNN effect and a range of different types of policy response to humanitarian crises, the central research findings are also compared with a much broader set of cases that move beyond forcible intervention to include non-coercive operations such as government support of aid agency relief and military logistical support for relief work. The chapter concludes with a broader discussion that considers the implications of the research findings for post-Cold War media power, foreign policy-making and humanitarian action.
As explained in Appendix C, whilst the policy-media interaction model is not being tested in this study, the overall case study research does allow us to assess, in a limited fashion, the validity of the model (see Table 6.1). Specifically we can examine the research as a whole in order to do three things. First, we can assess the validity of the theory that news media framing and policy certainty are key factors in determining media influence. Second, we can estimate the relative significance of each of these variables. Third, we can examine the validity of the insights provided by the model regarding the relationship between government and media during periods of policy certainty. I shall deal with each in turn.
