The CNN Effect examines the relationship between the state and its media, and considers the role played by the news reporting in a series of 'humanitarian' interventions in Iraq, Somalia, Bosnia, Kosovo and Rwanda. Piers Robinson challenges traditional views of media subservience and argues that sympathetic news coverage at key moments in foreign crises can influence the response of Western governments.

Introduction 1. The CNN Effect Considered 2. Developing a Theory of Media Influence 3. The CNN Effect Myth 4. The CNN Effect in Action 5. The Limits of the CNN Effect 6.The CNN Effect Reconsidered