Pérouse de Montclos Marc-Antoine. (2016). Numbers count : dead bodies, statistics, and the politics of armed conflicts. In :
Pérouse de Montclos Marc-Antoine (ed.), Minor E. (ed.), Sinha S. (ed.). Violence, statistics, and the politics of accounting for the dead. Cham : Springer, p. 47-69. (Demographic Transformation and Socio-Economic Development ; 4). ISBN 978-3-319-12035-5.
Titre du document
Numbers count : dead bodies, statistics, and the politics of armed conflicts
Année de publication
2016
Type de document
Partie d'ouvrage
Auteurs
Pérouse de Montclos Marc-Antoine
In
Pérouse de Montclos Marc-Antoine (ed.), Minor E. (ed.), Sinha S. (ed.) Violence, statistics, and the politics of accounting for the dead
Source
Cham : Springer, 2016,
p. 47-69 (Demographic Transformation and Socio-Economic Development ; 4). ISBN 978-3-319-12035-5
This strategic analysis of the body count introduces a general discussion on the measurement of war violence and excess mortality, its treatment by the media, humanitarian organisations, governments and the military, and its legal and political implications. It also examines narratives that contribute to inflate or minimize the statistics of excess mortality in armed conflicts. Emotion, the myth of a golden age, humanitarian advocacy, the political economy of the media, military propaganda, the visibility of certain battles and methodological issues all play an important role in this regard. Many factors push journalists and relief workers to choose the highest estimates of excess mortality. However, inflated figures desensitize the public to mass atrocities, encourage a dynamic where high numbers are required to justify action, and challenge the credibility of population studies and advocacy groups.
Plan de classement
Sciences fondamentales / Techniques d'analyse et de recherche [020]
;
Démographie [108]
;
Politique [114]
