ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the practice of war reporting in the context of 'risk society'. It provides a brief discussion of the concept of the risk society and the different ways in which it has been interpreted in relation to war and conflict. The chapter also discusses the conceptualisation of the role of the media in the construction of risk in modern society. The objectivity, rationality and accuracy of media coverage have been interrogated, and problems have been raised about how audiences make sense of what they consume in the news media. The chapter focuses on how risk is calculated and negotiated in everyday life. It considers the extent to which risk perception is a matter of personal and social factors and evaluates their relevance to professional and work practice. Getting risk wrong is the theme of much scholarly research into risk and journalism.
