How Western Media Exposes Its Racist Bias in Covering the Ukrainian Crisis
The Ukrainian crisis, precipitated by Russia’s invasion, has led to a significant humanitarian situation, with a massive influx of refugees seeking safety. This crisis has been extensively covered by Western media, but this coverage has not been without its controversies. A striking aspect of the reporting has been the apparent racial bias and double standards displayed by some Western journalists.
In a report by WION, Palki Sharma highlighted the racial bias in Western media’s coverage of the Ukrainian refugees. It was noted that while Arab refugees were often villainized and arrested, Ukrainians received a more sympathetic treatment. The language used by Western reporters often emphasized that the refugees were “Europeans with blue eyes and blonde hair,” suggesting an underlying racial bias in their empathy and reporting.
The Independent also addressed the racial bias in the media coverage, pointing out the shock and disbelief expressed by Western journalists and commentators at the conflict occurring in a predominantly white, European country. This reaction implied that bloodshed and invasion were expected in countries inhabited by Black and brown people. The coverage revealed an implicit acceptance of white supremacist ideology, which undervalues the lives of non-white people. For example, a CBS News correspondent described Ukraine as more “civilized” compared to conflict-ridden countries like Iraq and Afghanistan.
Progressive.org further expounded on these biases, emphasizing how mainstream Western media coverage has often normalized tragedies in parts of the world like the Middle East, Africa, South Asia, and Latin America. The Arab and Middle Eastern Journalists Association (AMEJA) criticized the media for its “implicit and explicit bias” in the Ukraine coverage, calling for equal importance to be ascribed to all victims of war. This type of coverage reflects a pervasive mentality in Western journalism that dehumanizes the experience of war in non-European countries, rendering their suffering as normal and expected.
The bias in media coverage is not a new phenomenon. It was critiqued as far back as in the 1988 book “Manufacturing Consent” by Noam Chomsky and Edward Herman. The book argued that U.S. mainstream media often featured stories that aligned with the interests of the government and elites, prioritizing coverage of “worthy victims” while neglecting or minimizing the plight of “unworthy victims” who do not fit the Western narrative.
The Ukrainian crisis, therefore, presents a critical opportunity for the Western media to reevaluate and address these ingrained biases. Acknowledging and challenging these assumptions is vital to providing balanced and empathetic coverage of conflicts worldwide, helping the public see the universal human impact of such tragedies.
