During the Vietnam War, Americans were greatly influenced by the extensive media coverage of the war. Before the 1960s and the intensification of the war, public news coverage of military action was severely limited by the government and was directed by government policy. The Vietnam War uniquely altered American citizens' perception of war and brought it into their homes. The Vietnam War was the United States' first uncensored war that led to the publication of graphic images and unaltered accounts of horrific events that helped change public opinion about the war like never before. This media portrayal led to a separation between the U.S. government and the press; much of what was reported made a mockery of the intentions of the government's policy. The media had received an enormous amount of blame for the outcome of the war; As a result of the media coverage, the American people were subjected to scrutiny and protest and were plunged into a state of unrest. “Television brought the brutality of war into the comfort of the living room. Vietnam was lost in America's living rooms, not on the battlefields of Vietnam." (MARSHALL MCLUHAN, Montreal Gazette, May 16, 1975) This quote clearly reflects the intensity of the American media's impact on the war. But what kind of propaganda could cause such an alien level of protest and objection from such a large population? The United States Army in Vietnam was the best educated, best trained, most disciplined, and most successful force ever fielded in the history of American arms. Why then did they receive such negative press and why was public opinion towards them so distorted? Television news has come of age in the eyes of Vietnam. By mid 1960... middle of paper... nam. New York, NY: Oxford UP, 1986. Turner, Kathleen J. “Lyndon Johnson's Double War: Vietnam and the Press.” Chicago: UP of Chicago, 1985.Groll, Morena. “Coverage of the Vietnam War in U.S. Television News” GRIN Verlag, 2007 McLuhan, Marshall, “The Vietnam War” Montreal Gazette, May 16, 1975. Hammond, William M. “Reporting Vietnam: Media and Military at War.” Lawrence, KS: UP of Kansas, 1998.Hayward, Steven. “The Tet Offensive”. Dialogues. April 2004. Ashland University (Ashbrook). January 13, 2012.Burrows, Larry. Life magazine "Vietnam: The Darker Side". August 1, 1962. Time & Life Images. January 13, 2012. Sears, KG “Vietnam: Looking Back at the Facts” 9 May 04. Article. January 13, 2012.>