The 'professionalization'? of communication within the French army, initiated in earnest during the first Gulf War, has turned journalists and military staff into 'rival partners'?. Interaction with members of the armed forces differs, depending on the journalist's specialization. Even though war reporters - especially when they are embedded - seem to depend directly on the information delivered to them by the army, the idea of journalists' subordination to their sources must be relativized. In a relational context where military sources are generally dominant, journalists, whether 'Defence'? accredited or not, have strategies to by-pass the army's communication.