Starring Blood Diamonds - Term Paper Example

Starring Blood Diamonds Introduction Blood Diamonds have been the cause of numerous wars and crimes committed against humanity. These diamonds continued to provide massive amounts of funds to civil wars and different militant groups until in 1993, a NGO, by the name of Global Witness published a report revealing the autocracies committed through the trade of diamonds. It was after this report that government, NGOs and even the diamond industry began to take notice of the situation and actively began to work against the trade of blood diamonds. However, the general public was still unaware of the impact of these diamonds. Media involvement in blood diamonds did not begin until 2000 when CNN released a documentary on this issue. It was this documentary that grabbed the interests of the viewers and later fueled further awareness among the general public. Media involvement in this issue plays a crucial role since it is the main link with the diamond buyers. Review on the issue of blood diamonds reveals that diamond buyers need to be aware of the situation in order to completely bring down the trade of blood diamonds. Thus, media is a vital source of information and also a key component towards eradicating the trade of blood diamonds. Through mainstream media coverage, information can be disseminated to a wide audience and powerful images on television may encourage action (Bieri, 38). This paper will discuss medias contribution towards helping society to get rid of the trade of blood diamonds. Different documentaries, advertisements and even movies would be discussed in the scope of this paper to understand the impact of media on the sale of blood diamonds. Blood Diamonds and Media Media coverage of Blood Diamonds did not begin until 2000; almost 7 years after the problem of Blood Diamonds was brought to the front by Global Witness. Before this, diamonds were an aspiration for millions of people. Diamond companies such as De Beers advertised diamonds to be the most precious gifts between lovers. A Diamond is Forever is one of the most popular campaigns released by De Beers. Even now, most consumers perceive diamond as an object of aspiration without realizing the story behind these diamonds. Media has recently begun to take notice of the issue and even then the image of blood diamonds in media is closely monitored and regulated. This is done to prevent diamonds- both legal and conflict- from acquiring the wrong image among the minds of the consumers. Diamond companies specifically De Beers plays an important role here because it does not want its market to suffer as a result of the negative image acquired by blood diamonds. 2000 was an important year in the history of Blood Diamonds because it was the year when the Kimberley Process had been initiated. It was perhaps because of this that media began to take notice of the issue. Media coverage began with CNNs documentary Cry Freedom that detailed the autocracies that were being committed in Sierra Leone. In most media portrayal of the issue, Sierra Leone has been the main area that is covered. This could be because it is here that the situation is the worst and this place has gained the favor of NGOs worldwide. Television Media Television could play a very important role in informing customers among blood diamonds because of the depth that television can offer as compared to other mediums of media. Viewers are more interested in seeing pictures as compared to reading stores. Also visual images such as those of amputated legs and hands carry more weight when compared to text depicting the same story. Television also reaches a wider group of people. Blood Diamonds as a subject have been taken up by various directors and producers. Their depiction in movies and documentaries has also been received with much favor among the general audience. Blood Diamonds by Edward Zwick One of the most popular media coverage of the blood diamond issue has been the movie directed by Edward Zwick by the name of Blood Diamonds. The movie released in 2006 captured the Sierra Leone Civil War. The movie was the first Hollywood movie to capture the issue of Blood Diamonds. It was released at a time when Africa was gaining much popularity among the media for the myriad of issues that it had. The movie was controversial in the timing that it was released. It coincided with the diamond industrys most busiest season- The Christmas season. The movie shows the numerous crimes against humanity that are being committed in Sierra Leone as militant groups in the area use civilians brutally in the diamond mines. Actors, Leonardo Di Caprio and Djimon Hounsou were nominated for Academy Award for their performance in the film. While this film was fictional in nature but many of the events such as the conference held in the end is based on true facts. The dramatic visual imagery in the movie may have been exaggerated but military operations depicted in the movie are quite accurate. Even though the film was not meant to be documentary regarding blood diamonds but it helped in increasing the general awareness regarding the problem. Movies belong to popular media and are more effective in reaching a wider group of audience. This movie, at the very least, sparked interest of the customers which could later have been cashed upon by campaigns directed at the core reality of the issue. The movie, however, has also been criticized for the impact that it would have on the overall diamond industry including the legitimate business. Nelson Mandela also expressed his fears regarding the impact of the movie to a letter that he wrote to the director of Blood Diamonds (Chrisman, 125). But the impact of the movie on the media cannot be altogether ignored. When the movie was released in 2006, all major news channel including NBC, ABC and CBS ran stories on Sierra Leone and Blood Diamonds. The issue of blood diamonds was discussed eleven times in these channels in just a period of two weeks when previously this issue was hardly ever discussed (Tsaliki, Frangonikolopoulos and Huliaras, 162). Blood Diamonds by History Channel In the same year when the Hollywood movie, Blood Diamonds was released, History Channel released a documentary on blood diamonds; also centered on Sierra Leone. This documentary recounts the wars of Sierra Leone and Angola; while at the same time discusses the steps taken towards solving the problem including the Kimberley Process Certificate Scheme. This movie contains interviews of leading authorities on the issue including Andy Bone (De Beers Spokesman), Cecilia Gardens (of World Diamond Council and Jewelers Vigilance Committee), Greg Campbell (author of Blood Diamonds) and Mathew Hart (author of Diamond) (Bates, 62). The documentary is much more graphic that the Hollywood movie in terms of its depiction of war crimes. The producers claimed that they edited some of the most obscene scenes due to the sensitivity for the viewers and victims. This shows that the situation is much worse but documentaries on this issue can help pave the way toward consumer awareness and involvement. Other documentaries related to the same issue include Cry Freedom, Blood on the Stone and Bling. Print Media Within Print Media, the image of diamonds has been closely regulated by De Beers. The company fears that consumers will begin to associate diamonds with war and other brutal crimes without realizing the difference between blood diamonds and legitimate diamonds. Therefore, campaigns on this issue are few in number. Amnesty Internationals Campaign One popular advertisement was the one released by Amnesty International. This advertisement showed a split image. One half of the poster showed a women wearing a diamond necklace. The other half showed the split image of the womens profile; except the other half depicted a black women with her neck slit where the necklace had been (Susan, 452). This is a powerful image as it questions the consciousness of the diamond buyers. It forces them to consider whether the diamond they are wearing is authentic. This image will work for consumers who are already aware of the ground reality; otherwise the message may very well not be comprehended by the average consumer. Brilliant Earth Advertisement Another print advertisement promoting ethical buying of blood diamonds takes a slightly different approach. In this particular poster, the image depicts a feminine woman wearing a diamond ring. A similar ring is shown encircling a flower in the other half of the poster (Susan, 457). This advertisement calls into question the ethical duty of the consumer when they buy a diamond. Ethical consumerism is highlighted in the ad by using a concept of green consumerism. Green consumerism refers to buying products that have a low negative impact on the environment and blood diamonds have a high negative impact in the way that they treat the most precious part of the earth- humans. Blood Diamonds in the Music Industry References of blood diamond in the Music industry are quite limited. While there is a music band under the name of Blood Diamonds but it has no connection with the illegal diamonds mined in Sierra Leone or any other disputed territory. Kanye West, the American hip-hop artist, did however record a song Diamonds from Sierra Leonoe in 2005. This song belongs to Wests second album, Late Registration and also received a Grammy award during the 48th Grammy Awards for the best rap song. This song contains strong references to the diamonds being mined at Sierra Leone. It lays out the situation in Sierra Leone which the lyricist compared to Vietnam; except that the horror of Vietnam has long since passed but people in Sierra Leone are still being brutally treated on account of blood diamonds. The song also draws a connection between the diamonds that most of the people wear and the diamonds that are being mined in SierraLeone. This song could possibly have a strong impact on the listeners because rap is one of the most favorite genres among the young people of today. These young people form an important part of the diamond trade considering that they are potential buyers in the near future when they plan to get engaged or married. Kanye West, being a role model for the young generation of today, would be an ideal person to endorse the issue. The young generation values the ideas and opinions of their music idols and are more likely to pay attention when they hear something from these idols. Celebrity Endorsement Another manner in which media can help in increasing consumer awareness among blood diamonds is through its celebrities. Celebrity endorsement form an important and growing component in todays advertising world mainly because most people aspire to be like their favorite celebrities and therefore try to imitate the same steps as these celebrities. When celebrities or media personalities begin to endorse ethical buying of diamonds, it would set a trend for the rest of the world. Some media celebrities have already taken up the issue. If nothing, celebrities help to gain attention of the general public towards a specific issue. For instance, when the movie Blood Diamonds was released, many celebrities including Leonardo Di Caprio began to actively raise awareness against the trade of blood diamonds. However, at many points, celebrities have been criticized for owning blood diamonds. For instance, Naomi Campbell was recently part of a court case where two of her diamonds were tested as conflict diamonds. The diamonds worn by Angelina Jolie have also been under scrutiny. Conclusion Blood Diamonds have starred in various media platform since 2000. However, the concept of blood diamonds in filtered into the mainstream thought only after the movie Blood Diamonds starring Leonardo Di Caprio was released. It was in the same year that celebrities began to pledge their alliance towards buying ethical diamonds even though references to blood diamonds had been made before including a music song released by Kanye West in 2005. In the end, it is the media that has to the power to bring change in the thoughts and actions of the common people. Works Cited Bates, Rob. "History Channel Airs Blood Diamonds Doc." Jck 178.3 (2007): 62. Business Source Elite. Web. 11 Aug. 2014. Bieri, Franziska, From Blood Diamonds to the Kimberley Process: How NGOs Cleaned Up the Global Diamond Industry, NY: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2010 Chrisman, Laura. "The Sight, Sound, And Global Traffic Of Blackness In Blood Diamond." African Studies Review 55.3 (2012): 123-144. Political Science Complete. Web. 11 Aug. 2014 Falls, Susan. "Picturing Blood Diamonds." Critical Arts: A South-North Journal Of Cultural & Media Studies 25.3 (2011): 441-466. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 Aug. 2011 Tsaliki, Liza, Frangonikolopoulos, Cristos and Huliaras, Asteris,Transnational Celebrity Activism in Global Politics: Changing the World? IL: Intellect Books, 2011 Read More