Former US Marine Displays Iraq War Diaries

Lieutenant Tim McLaughlin drove a tank into Iraq at the start of the US invasion in 2003, and stayed to battle on there. Now his war diaries, on show in New York alongside works by a journalist and photographer, are a poignant reminder of the power and cost of conflict.

Published

2 months ago

Categories

US, World

Topics

Military Veterans, United States, Middle East & North Africa

People

Tim Mc Laughlin

Places

United States of America, Iraq

Transcript

SCRIPT: When the first tanks rolled into Iraq in 2003, Lieutenant Tim McLaughlin was among those leading the charge. His battalion was the first unit of Marines to make it to Baghdad. It was the beginning of a long, brutal war -- and many moments still haunt McLaughlin today. SOUNDBITE 1 Lieutenant Timothy McLaughlin (man), Iraq war veteran (English, sec): "Shooting a few seconds too early and shooting a taxi cab. A few days later, I didn’t shoot fast enough and the enemy shot one of the marines behind me. So, that’s just one experience among thousands but that’s the one that sticks with me because I got them wrong." McLaughlin kept a handwritten diary in those days. Poster-size excerpts are now on display here, at the Bronx Documentary Center in New York. The multimedia exhibit also includes work from two journalists, writer Peter Maass and photographer Gary Knight. Both covered the beginning of the invasion of Iraq and closely followed McLaughlin's unit. Knight says the show depicts realities of the war that remain unreported today. SOUNDBITE 2 Gary Knight (man), War photographer (English, 22 sec): "The narrative of the war has always been told by media organizations who have an agenda, or by politicians who have an agenda. So our desire was to come together and tell the world the way we saw it." McLaughlin has since moved on from the war and is now a lawyer in Boston. But he has struggled with PTSD and learned hard lessons from the battlefield. SOUNDBITE 3 Lieutenant Timothy McLaughlin (man), Iraq war veteran (English, 22 sec): "If I could give any message to the public, it would be to think more critically about decisions to go to war. Because sometimes, wars need to happen, and they do, but rushing into them without thinking of the consequences during combat and after combat those are important considerations that I think we should spend a little bit more time thinking about." Visitors have until April 19 to check out the Iraq War Diaries -- a rare and raw insight from the field, ten years on. ------------ SHOTLIST: NEW YORK, MARCH 14, 2013, SOURCE: AFPTV - exterior shot of Timothy McLaughlin arriving at the Bronx Documentary Center - CU photo of McLaughlin in Iraq - CU photo of US Marines in Iraq (McLaughlin on the far left) - CU of video of a tank SOUNDBITE 1 Lieutenant Timothy McLaughlin - CU excerpt of a diary entry dated Feb 21, 2003 - WS of poster-size excerpts - MS of a page - MS of Peter Maass, Gary Knight et McLaughlin at the show - CU photo of Peter Maass in Iraq - CU photo of Gary Knight in Iraq - pan of two framed Peter Maass articles on the war - CU of a Gary Knight photo - plan large exposition SOUNDBITE 2 Gary Knight - VAR of McLaughlin at the expo SOUNDBITE 3 Lieutenant Timothy McLaughlin - CU of a visitor - MS of Peter Maass and Gary Knight talking to a woman - McLaughlin showing his war pictures to a woman