Prague Embassy cable, Embassy Protest of Attack on American Journalist During November 17-19

In this November 20 cable to the State Department, the U.S. Embassy in Prague reported its formal protest of the assault on American journalists during the November 17 demonstration. Western media coverage of independent and anti-state activity had increased during 1989. By autumn, foreign media correspondents were expected at demonstrations. Dozens of international journalists covered the November 17 procession and many were wounded during the confrontation with police afterwards. The embassy's protest described injuries sustained by American citizens. While acknowledging that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had denied responsibility for foreign nationals' safety at demonstrations, the embassy asserted that police had deliberately targeted foreign journalists. Therefore the Czechoslovak government was accountable for their mistreatment. The embassy's argument highlights the contentious role foreign media played in communist countries. On the one hand, media coverage of protests damaged the party's image and it regarded the Western press as part of the anti-state opposition. On the other hand, Western governments championed freedom of speech and open access to information as basic human rights. As seen in its protest's conclusion, the U.S. embassy perceived the physical attack on media personnel as a symbolic attack on Western democratic values.