In Scandals in Past and Contemporary Politics, edited by political scientist James Newell and historian John Garrard, a political scandal is defined as “a departure or lapse from the normative standards that guide behavior in public office.” A distinction is also made between substantive and procedural scandals. A substantive scandal involves a single, initial scandal, while a procedural scandal involves a cover up which becomes more controversial than the original scandal (Newell and Garrard 78). The My Lai Massacre was most certainly a departure from normative standards, and involved elements of both substantive and procedural scandals. The massacre, which involved the ruthless slaughter of hundreds of Vietnamese civilians, lowered public …show more content…
As aforementioned, the death toll at My Lai is estimated to be a staggering 347 to 504. This death toll has contributed to the My Lai Massacre’s reputation as one of the darkest moments in the Vietnam War (Morelock 60). Part of the effectiveness of this presentation to the public is due to its constant featuring in major news outlets. For example, the story was featured on the front page of TIME magazine in 1971. Also, photos captured by combat photographers helped present people with images of the event, painting a vivid image of the murders (Wilberding 31). All this knowledge was accompanied by the building disapproval of America’s involvement in the Vietnam war, and My Lai served as evidence of America’s failure (Wilberding …show more content…
The support for conservatism under Ronald Reagan’s platform led to the reestablishment of the military as a trustworthy institution. Additionally, as the generation which experienced the aftermath of the massacre first hand began to age, a younger generation with more positive conceptions of the military began to grow. This limited any long term distrust in the military. As a result, trust in the military remains high to this day (Freedman et al. 174). The desire to believe and trust in the individual officers may have lessened focus on My Lai, and instead placed focus on the higher level officers. Many claimed the incident a result of miscommunication between higher officers and their soldiers, making it a single accident rather than a repeatable offense. Many characterize the Vietnam war as a tactical lapse of judgement, not a humanitarian disaster as shown in the My Lai Massacre. This change in recognition has led to a lack of resulting legislation or political action from these events (Gray, Truda, and Martin 104). The tragic killings of around 400 unarmed Vietnamese civilians have gone somewhat unnoticed over time in the political landscape due to changes in the political agenda and interpretations which diminish the importance of the