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Televisedwars!
Experiencingpoliticalwarfarethroughthetelevision
Author: M.A.vanderPluijm
Solis-ID: 3727726
Email: M.A.vanderpluijm@students.uu.nl
Datecompletion: 16-04-2012
Academicblock: 32011/2012
Course: NewMediaArchaeology
Professor: ImardeVries
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Contents
INTRODUCTION 3
CHAPTER1-TELEVISIONTOTHERESCUE 5
CHAPTER2-WHENTELEVISIONGOESTOWAR 9
CHAPTER3-POLITICS,NEWSANDENTERTAINMENTINTERTWINED 14
CONCLUSION 18
BIBLIOGRAPHY 19
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Introduction
At the beginning of the twenty-first century, media apparatuses seem to be more and more
importantthanatanyothertimeinhistory.Inanerawhentheaspectofglobalizationhasaccelerated
withtheemergenceofnewmediatechnologies,suchastheradio,television,mobiletelephonesand
eventheInternet,sharinginformationisnotjustanationalthing,ithasbecomepartofaglobalunity
(Castells2010:357).Withtheglobalsharingof information, certainopportunitiesaroseforvarious
actorswithinthemedialandscape.Nationaltelevision,press,andmanymoreinstitutionswere,and
still are, included in an immense worldwide flowof information and thoughts. Nowadays,mostly
symbolisedbytheInternet,mediaofferalotofpossibilitiesforeverybodywhohasdirectaccesstoit.
Oneof theopportunitiesthat are frequently used, even since the formation of theearly
RomanEmpire,istheuseofmediainlightofpropaganda.EveninthebeginningoftheageofJulius
Caesarthereweresignsof propaganda.By puttinghis headas first oneever oncoins, this would
result in the earliest forms of propaganda (Jitta 1974: 110). For in fact, Caesar did not had any
newspapershecoulduse,radios,televisionsoreventheInternet,towinoverthemoralelementand
publicrelations.Since theseaspectsarehalfthebattleaccordingto Napoleon,whichin thesedays
stillstandsforthebattlesfoughtoverintheworld.Butthequestionmayarisewhatthedefinitionof
propagandais.
Inthetraditionallysettings,propagandaoftenhasadarkmeaning,whichisnotthecasein
everysituation.Propagandainitselfisnotnecessarilysomethingthatisevil.Throughouthistorythe
politicianshavealwaysattemptedtoinfluencethewaythedifferentpublicsseetheworld.Theword
propaganda isnotsimply a sinisterwordon what the otherside does,whileone onitsown side
concentrateson informationorpublicity.Moderndictatorshipshavenever felt theneed tohide
from the word in the same way that democracieshave done.As the Nazishad theirMinistryof
Propaganda, so had the Soviets their Propaganda Committee of the Communist Party, while the
BritishhadaMinistryofInformation,andtheUSAanOfficeofWarInformation.
Whatisinterestingisthenotiononhowdifferentpublicsseetheworld.Forherewecan
makeaconnectiontothetelevision.Becausetelevisionletsyouexperiencethatwhatishappeningin
theworld,inaselectedtelevisionprogram.Inawaythetelevisioncanbeseenastheextensionofthe
sensorium,whereitextendstheeyes,earsandphysicalpresenceandthuscreatesadualsenseof
placewheretheearalsobecomestheeye(Arnheim1958:160;Buonanno2008:17;McLuhan1994:
90; Schwartz1974: 16). But what ismost interestingto see isthatthe television throughout the
historyhasbeenusedforpoliticalneeds,alternativelypropaganda,although thatwasntthe initial
idea.Evenuptilltodaytherearehintsofpropagandahiddeninnewsprograms,electionsandeven
televisionseriesalsomentionedasentertainment.The televisionandpoliticalwarfareseemstobe
intertwinedwitheachother.Byexaminingtheseaspectsfromanarchaeologicalpointofviewwecan
get a better picture ofhow the political influence ispresentat different mediawithin the media
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landscape.Bytakingthetelevisionasaleadinthisresearch,connectionstowardsothermediacanbe
madewithoutease,insteadofdiscussingeverymediumexcessivelythatispresentatthemoment.
Insummary,whatIwanttodoisrecallafewoftheinitialideasthatcameupwithinvention
ofthetelevision,contrastthistotheperiodwhenwarwasfoughtoverthetelevision,connectthisto
thenowwheredifferentexamplesofintertwinedentertainmentandpropagandashallbepresented,
andthenaskhowtheseexamplesreflectuponthemedialandscape.Inparticular,Iwanttoaskhow
by examining the television as part of the media landscape, politics and entertainment are
intertwinedwitheachotherwithinthelastcentury.
Thisresearchwaswrittensoastoreachtheacademicaudiencesandthegeneralalike.In
ordertoprovideeasyaccessforthosewithoutextensiveknowledgeofthetechnicallanguageabout
thevariousconceptsdiscussedinthisresearch,theapproachhasbeenmadesimpleenoughforall
audiences to understand the research. The technical language that someone wouldoften find in
mediaarchaeologicalstudiesisexplainedwhenandwhereneeded.Furthermoretherehasbeenan
extensiveanalysisof themediaandpropagandathathasbeenimplementedin thisresearchwhere
theexplorationofhowmediaandpoliticalinstitutionsmainlyoperateintheUnitedStates,andin
manycasesthroughouttheworld.Bigandimportantconceptsareexplainedinaclearandsensible
way, so that the reader will be givenenough exampleswithin each chapter to support the main
themeinthisresearch.Thisapproachmakesthisworkarelevantcaseforanumberofvariousfields
withinacademicandgeneralperspectives.
Thestructureofthisresearchhasbeenkeptsimple,resultinginthreedifferentchapters.In
thefirstchaptertheutopianthoughtstowardsthetelevisionwillbestipulatedanddiscussed.Though
televisionisacentralmediuminthisresearch,itisimportanttorelatethemediumtoothermedia.In
thesecondchapterthecentralideaishowthetelevisionbecameawarmachinefromthemomentit
becameapopulardevice.Toconcludewiththethirdandlastchapter,wheretheintertwinementof
politicalinfluences,newsandentertainmentwillbediscussed.
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Chapter1
TELEVISIONTOTHERESCUE
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Utopianthoughtsconcerningthetelevision
Thesedaystelevision isstill seen asa central part ofthe home and isdispersed more and more
throughout thehomeand, especially, located in thebedroom. (Livingstone2010: 306; Silverstone
1994:100).ThoughtheearlyformsoftelevisioncanbetracedbacktoaGermaninventionin1884,
namelytheNipkowDiskbyPaulGottliebNipkowandthelateronexperimentaltelevisionbyJohn
LogieBaird,television,asweknowittodayusesaprocessdatingbacktothe1930s(Howett2006:13;
Huhtamo&Parikka2011:248).Andeventhatisfarfromthetelevisionafter1945.Itwasinthe1930s
thatGermany,GreatBritainandtheUnitedStatesallhadtelevisionprogramming,butitwasonly
availabletoaselectnumberofpeople,mostlytheprivilegedones.
In order to explain the intertwining of the entertainment and political influences, it is
necessarytodescribehow thetelevisionwasperceivedas intheearlydays.Withthearrivalof the
television,therewerealotofutopianthoughtsconnectedtoitandwiththeknowledgeofthepast
wecannowstipulatethatwerecognizevariouselementsofacertainmediumintoanothermedium.
Inotherwordsremediation:acentralideaforthinkingaboutnewmediasincethisconceptsuggests
thatallnewmediainawayadaptelementsfrompreviousmedia(Bolter&Grusin1999).Letustake
this thoughta littlebitfurther sincethisis something that reoccurs throughouthistoryandwecan
definethatasadjvu-likeexperience.Thisdjvu-likeexperiencewithinthedevelopmentofmedia
issomethingthatErkkiHuhtamo,asamediaarchaeologist,studiesexcessively.Huhtamopaysalotof
attentiontothelifeoftopoi,orinothersomewhatclichdterms,elementsthatsproutoutoverand
overagaininmediahistory.Thisprovidesusa sortof roadmapforexperiences.Whatmayseemat
firstnewoftenprovestobejustnewpackagingofideasrepeatedduringhundredsandmaybeeven
thousandsofyears(Huhtamo1997:222).Inotherwords,thenewinnewiseventuallynotnew.This
particulartheseforgedbyHuhtamo,makesiteasytoconnectthetelevisiontothebroadermedia
landscape. As for the utopian thoughts, Fredric Jameson, an American literary critic and Marxist
politicaltheorist,statesthatutopianismcanbe seen[a]s awholedistinctprocessin itsownright
(Jameson2005:10).Thisissomethingthathastobetakenintoaccountfor,mainlybecauseof the
thrivingneedofautopianworld.Toputthisinperspectivewewillbrieflydiscussthetelegraph,the
telephone,theradioandthetelevision.
Whenwelookforinstanceatthetelegraph,thepredecessorofthetelephoneandinaway
remediatedineveryothertechnologicalmedium, itis interestingto seehowtheelectric telegraph
madetheutopicthoughtoflongdistancecommunicationpossible(Douglas1986:37;Kern1983:11).
Because of the availability of electricity in the 1800s, itwas a next big step inusing the electric
telegraph.Theelectric telegraphbecamepopularunder thepublicandwassociallyaccepted.Over
200submarinecableshadbeenlaidandthushumanitysucceededinmakingvirtuallyeverycornerof
the earth a link in a worldwide chain of communications (American Telephone and Telegraph
Company 1922: 82). This concept of an earth where everybody is connected through media
apparatuses is something that is also defined as the global village concept. Marshall McLuhan
describedhowtheglobehasbeencontractedintoavillagebyelectrictechnology(McLuhan1962:31).
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Everybodyisconnectedtoeachotherandnowadaysthetermglobalvillageismorecommonlyused
asametaphortodescribetheInternet.Still,therewerealltheseutopianthoughts,aswemaynow
talkaboutslighthintsofhindsight,ofwhetherthetelegraph,andlaterthewirelesstelegraph,would
bringpeaceintotheworldandmaketheworldaglobalvillage(Douglas1986:37;Kern1983:13).So
theconceptoftheglobalvillageisnotsomethingthatwascoinedbyMarshallMcLuhanafterall,for
in fact researchersand popularnewspapers in thelate 1800s werealready writing about a global
unity.
Thisspecificelementinhistory returnedagainwiththe introductionofthe telephone.The
introductionofanewmedium(andwhatisnew innewhere)adapteditselfslowlyintosocietyand
wasgraduallyaccepted.Togiveanindicationoftheperiodwhenthetelephonewasintroduced,the
notion of Alexander Graham Bell, given by Sidney H. Aronson applies perfectly in this context.
Aronsonstatesthat[t]hetelephonecametoAmericaandtherestoftheworldonMarch10,
1876;on that day, asfar asis known, Alexander GrahamBell becamethefirstpersonto transmit
speechelectrically (Aronson1977:15).Again theutopianvisionreturns within this context, when
talkingabouttherestoftheworld.AlsotheAmericanTelephoneandTelegraphCompany(AT&T)for
instancesawthetelephoneasamedium,whichwouldbringalpeopletogetherandunitesthemto
speakthesamecommonlanguageandunitetheearthintoonebrotherhood(Pooletal.2002:128-
129).
Thenagain,we have theradio.The discourse surrounded theradiowasmore or less the
sameaswhatwesawwiththetelegraphandthetelephone.Utopianvisionsofhowtheradiowould
connectustothedeadpersons,maketheworldaglobalvillageandin theendconnectustoMars
(Boddy1994:107-108;Douglas1986:54).Insomemindsitwouldevensavethelivesoppeopleand
eventually cure theworld (Douglas1986:37). The radio nonethelessbecamequite popular in the
averagehousehold.Mostofthetimethiswasachievedbecauseofthebrilliantmarketingconducted
bythevariouscommercialisedradiocompanies.Tomaketheradioanacceptedmediaapparatusin
thehouseholds,it wasnecessary to convince thewomen of itsimportance. Thewomen wereat
homemostofthetimeandthusbecameaninterestinggroupforthecommercializedsectionofthe
market(Boddy1994:112).Specialisedradioprogramswerecreated,whichsuitedtheneedsof the
women(ibid.:114).Whenwelookatthemorerecentperiodwiththediscoveryofthetelevision,weseethat
thenotion ofdistanceagain is a centraltopic (Arnheim1958: 160; Elsner,Mller& Spangenberg
1994: 113). The utopian visions of the public, the free-floating fantasy as Monika Elsner,Thomas
MllerandPeterM.Spangenbergstateit,wereanillusionaryhorizonofexpectations(Elsner,Mller
&Spangenberg1994: 117).Theystipulatethattherewasanewhorizonofcommunicationforged,
exceptthiswasnotcommunicationashowwenormallywouldexecuteit(ibid.:112).Itwasperceived
asone-sidedcommunication.Onecharacteristicofthetelevisionhowever,isthatitinawayextends
thehumansenseorgans,orasElsner,MllerandSpangenbergliketoputit:[a]rtificiallyenhancethe
abilitiesofthehumansenseorgans(Ibid.:110).NowadayswealsohaveMcLuhanwhowroteabout
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theextensionofthesensoriuminhisextensiontheory(McLuhan1994:90).Thisisratherinteresting
tosee,becauseoneofthecentraltopicsofthethesesElsner,MllerandSpangenbergwroteaboutis
thetransformationofperceptionthroughtechnicalmedia(Elsner,Mller&Spangenberg1994:109).
Here we can combine the thoughts of distance and extension of the human sense organs. This
sentenceisveryimportantanddescribesinasinglebreathwhatthetelevisionwasandisallabout.
Seeingwhatishappeningintheworldandexperiencingitasifyouwerethereyourself.ButasElsner,
Mller and Spangenbergput it, it wasnt easy for the television tobeseenasa replacement, an
alternativeforthetelegraph,telephoneandradio(ibid.:122).Thefactthatimagescouldbesentand
visualised through themedium was alreadyan exciting development.Butpeople tended to want
morebecauseofthereturningfactordesiretocommunicatewitheachother.Asoftoday,withall
thesevariousdevelopedmedia, thetelegraph, telephone,radioand thetelevision, theyarein fact
combinedintoasinglemedium,calledtheInternet.
In retrospect we can conclude that the various discussed media apparatuses were
overwhelmedwithnotionsoftechnologicimaginaire.Thedeterministicthoughtsthataradiowould
curetheworldofitsdiseaseswereofcourse(aswenowmayknow)farfetched.Thesedeterministic
thoughtshowever,arestillnoticeableinmorerecentperiods.WhenwetaketheInternetforexample,
andthevariousmediaimplementedwithinit,thenotionsofagloballyconnectedplanetthroughthe
mediumisprettymuchthesameasacenturyagowhiletalkingaboutothermedia.Thesamegoesfor
the mobile phones and ofcourse the smartphones, and the most recent developmentofGoogle
whereglassesmakeyourworldabetterplacetolivein(Google2012).Theystatethatthiskindof
technologywillhelpyouexploreandshareyourworldwherethenotionofputtingyoubackin the
moment,orbackonthemapasonemightstateit,isyetagainaverydjvu-likeexperience.The
constantreturningofthesenotions,thattechnologywillmaketheworldalittlebitbettertolivein,is
something that has been an ongoing phenomenon for centuries now. What is interesting to see
however is that besides themedium itself,the content is a very noticeableworthy aspect.In the
upcomingchapterthetelevisionwillbeplacedagainasacentralmedium,whereanobservationof
howthetelevisionbecameawarmachinewillbeenlightened.
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Chapter2
WHENTELEVISIONGOESTOWAR
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Thewarmachinecalledthetelevision
Whenconnectingbacktotheintroduction,wherethequoteofNapoleonwasintroduced,whostated
that in war the moral element and public relations are half the battle, we can now make an
interestingshift from utopianism towards,as I would like to call it,the warmachine or inother
words,thetelevision.Thismediumeventuallybecamebeingusedforpoliticalwarfareandpolitical
influences,orpropaganda,invariouskeymomentsinhistory.Althoughtelevisionasamediumwas
usedinvariousperiodsinhistoryexcessivelyforpoliticalwarfare,itwasnottheonlymediumthat
was used for this particular aspect. Besides the television the radio, newspapers and even
photographsand many more othermedia, were used for a history full of information related to
propagandisticgoals.Thetelevisionwillthereforebeusedasareflectionuponthemedialandscape,
this as stipulated before, with various references towards other mediaused in the same period.
Althoughnomediumis thesame,theperspectiveofHuhtamocanbeappliedtothemandthuswe
canspeakofdjvu-likeexperiences,whichenablesustopicka certainmedium.Toillustratehow
thetelevisionbecameamediumofpoliticalwarfare,foreverysideofthebattle,whichhastobesaid
ofcourse, therewill bereflectedupon threedifferentwars that tookplace inhistory.Respectively
WorldWarII,TheVietnamWarandtheGulfWar.
WorldWarII
PeoplenowadaysmostlyrelatepropagandatoWorldWarII.AperiodinwhichAdolfHitler
andJosephGoebbels,apersonwhowasseenastherighthandofAdolfHitler,extensivelyusedmedia
to reflect their thoughtsupon the public opinion.Mostly by the excessive use of pamphlets and
foremost radiobroadcasts.As Elsner,MllerandSpangenberg state, [i]n themedia systemof the
ThirdReich,televisionwasnotneeded,eitherasadirectpropagandainstrumentlikeradioorasan
offeringofentertainmentandescapeliketheUfAproductions(Elsner,Mller&Spangenberg1994:
137).Eventhoughthetelevisionwasatthattimeanexperimentalmedium,whereithadtocompete
with the popular radio and film, which were both alreadyglobally accepted in the 1930s, itwas
somethingthatwasonthebrinkofabreakthrough(ibid.:107).BecauseoftheoutbreakofWorldWar
II,thetelevisionprogramminghadtobeshutdowninGermany,theUnitedKingdomandtheUnited
States.Therewerethosewhowouldstillbroadcastsomething,butitwasasminimalasitcouldget.
This simultaneously meant that the development of the television was put on hold. So from a
practical point of view, we could state that television is a post-1945 phenomenon. Nonetheless,
televisionwasstillusedintheWorldWarII,butmoreinpublicoccasions(ibid.:107)
ItdidnotfittheexpectationsoftheGermanpoliticalambitionsandclearlydidnothavethe
perceivedimpactonthepublicasinlightoftheradio.Radiotransmissionsweremoreoftenusedin
termsofpoliticalexpressions.NotonlybytheGermansbutalsobyforemosttheUnitedKingdomand
the United States (Short 1983: 193). Through the radio they would daily sent foreign languagebroadcastsintoenemyterritoriesdisguisedasnews.Thebroadcastswereintendedtocontributeto
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theloweringofthemoraleamongthegeneralpublicandthearmedforcesofthetargetedcountries.
NonethelessGermansexperimentedgreatlywiththisnewmediumcalledthetelevisionandcreateda
nationaltechnologicalmyth(Elsner,Mller&Spangenberg1994:129).
Butasidefromtheradioandtheriseofthetelevision(althoughslowbutforsure),cinema
wasalsousedextensivelyintermsofpropaganda.Noteverybodyhada televisionintheirhomeof
course,sothecinemawasacreativeandeasywaytodistributethegoalsforgedbythegovernments
andpresentthem to themass.WaltDisneyand Looney Tunes wereamong thelargerproduction
companies who supported the United States. In the next chapter this particular aspect will be
explainedinamoredetailedsense.
So here are the hints of political influences through animation. Paul Virilio, who is best
known forhis writingsabouttechnologyas it hasdeveloped in relationto speed andpower, with
diversereferencestoarchitecture,thearts,thecityandthemilitary,proposesthatcinemaiswar.
Which also applies to the increased extension of audio-visual technology into thedomesticspace
through television. So the Nazis had wielded the new cinema apparatus (and to some degree
televisionalso)todevastatingeffect,mobilisingtheirpopulationthroughpropagandaintoastateof
totalwar.Todays televisioncanservethesamepurpose;butasViriliopointsout,withvideosand
walk-mans (and now we should add smartphones, pcs and laptops as well) we are increasingly
directors of our own reality (Virilio 1989: 66).The increasing mobilityof audio-visual technology
makestheentireworldintheendapotentialscreen.Inamorerecentwar,theVietnamWar,the
televisionplayedaneven greaterpart inbecoming a true warmachine.Withthe trueuprising of
televisioninthe1950s,thefocusshiftedandpoliticiansincreasinglyconcentratedtheirattentionto
thenewdomesticscreens(Reeves1999:6)
Vietnam:TheTelevisedWar
In1963televisionnetworknewsexpandedgreatlyfromfifteentothirtyminutebroadcasts(Mangouri
etal.2010:5).AlthoughnewscoverageoftheVietnamWardidnotreallyproducedmuchliveimages
ofthe violenceintothe homesof the millionsof Americans, mostly because ofthe fact that the
fightingusuallytookplaceatnightinremotejungleareas.Itstillproducedoneofthemostdiscussed
piecesofnewsthatwouldcomeoutoftheVietnamWar.Thiswastheexecutionin February1968,
whenaVietcongsuspectwasexecutedbyaSouthVietnamesechiefofpolice,attheverybeginningof
theTetOffensive,whichlateronmarkedachangeintheVietnamWar(Thomas1998).TheVietnam
War,whichlastedfrom1957till1975wasatruewarfoughtoverthetelevision.Thereasonswhy
America was involved in Vietnam sort of goes along the lines that the south (non-communist)
Vietnamwasinvadedbythenorth(communist)VietnamandtheUnitedStatescametotheaidofthe
south.Allsortsofmisleadingreasonswhy theUnitedStateswas involvedinVietnamweregivento
the American society. As we know now these reasons were untrue, but it required massive
propaganda to create this standard and accepted image. This historical amnesia, as John Pilger,
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Australianjournalistanddocumentarymaker,states,isnotaccidental.Moreoveritdemonstratesthe
ridiculouspowerofthedominantpropagandaduringtheVietnamWar.DuringtheVietnamWarthe
constantAmericangovernmentlinewasthatthewarwasessentiallyaconflictofVietnameseagainst
Vietnamese.In this light theUnited Statesbecamemistakenlyinvolved(Pilger2001:178).Through
thevariousmediathepoliticianswereabletospreadtheiridealisticthoughtsoverthepublic.Bythis
timethetelevisionmaybehadbecomethemostimportantsourceofnewsfortheAmericanpublic,
andpossibly themost powerfuland influentialmedium towards thepublic opinion itself.Around
1966thetelevisionwasplacedinnearly93percentagesoftheAmericanhomes(Bonior,Champlin&
Kolly1984:18).Thisincontrastto16yearsearlierwhenthiswasonlya9percentage.Soonecould
concludethatthetelevisionhadmadeitsuprisingin theUnitedStatesaround that time.American
citizens responded in a series of surveys, conducted by theRoper Organization for theTelevision
InformationOfficefrom1964till1972,thattheymoreoftenturnon thetelevisionas theirprimary
sourcefornews(Hallin1989:106)
ButwhatalsohappenedwasthattheRoperorganisationaskedpeoplewhichmediumthey
trustedmostwhenseeingaccountsofthewar.Whatresultedwasnearlyhalfoftherespondentsin
1972saidtelevisionwasthetrustworthiestmediumtheyowned(ibid.:106).Mainlybecauseoftwo
presentelements,visualsandpersonality.Thevisualelementoftelevisionallowsviewerstofeelasif
theyarepartoftheaction.Whennewsprogramsairedimagesofbattlesanddeath,Americansat
homefeltasiftheytoowereinthejunglesofVietnam,justliketheearlierdescribedextensionofthe
sensesconnectedtoplace.Additionally,intensevisualshelpedinexplainingtheverycomplexnature
ofwar towardsAmericanswho couldnotunderstandthemilitarystechnicallanguagemostofthe
time.AnchorsandreportersquicklybecametrustedwithintheAmericanhouseholds,mostlybecause
of thepublic that would turn to them everynight fortheir daily information.WalterCronkite, an
Americanbroadcastjournalist,wasevenreferredtoasthemosttrustedmaninAmericathroughout
thewar(ibid.:106).Thistrustallowedthefacesoftelevisionnewstohavesomeinfluenceonhow
manyAmericanswouldperceivetheVietnamWar.Americans,inthatlight,increasinglydependedon
televisionforimagesandaccuratestoriesabouttheVietnamWar.Intheendtheywerewatchingan
editedversionofthewar,awarthatwasanextremelycomplexwar
TheGulfWar19901991
When reflecting towards the most recent war of the three, the Gulf War was another excellent
exampleofhownewscoverageofinternationalconflictstodomesticaudienceswasstrictlycensored
andshapedbythemilitaryinaseriesofpressconferencesandnewsreleases.Surgicalbombingand
collateral damage were euphemisms describing tremendous infrastructural damage and dead
civilians,andillustratedwithremoteaerialshotsdevoidofhumancasualtiesduringtheGulfWar.In
theGulfWar,thattookplaceinIraq,alotofnewscoveragewasexecutedinthosedays.Thedifferent
mediawereusedforinfluentialpurposes.Welltoagreatextent,however,duringtheactualwar,asin
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previouswars,thevariousnationalmediahadtorelyonthemilitaryforcesforaccesstoeventsand
foraccesstotheirbroadcastnetworks.Soitwasrathereasyforthemilitarytodecidewhatwouldbe
seenasnewsandwhatforafactnot.IncontrasttotherelativelyfreereportinginVietnam,the
UnitedStates soughttomanagereportingfromtheGulfWarbyinstitutingasystemofpresspools
withitsarmedforces.
BoththeIraqisandtheUnitedStateshadthepreviouswarinmind.TheVietnamWarwas
stillrooteddeepintheirformulationsoftheirpropagandastrategies.Butasstatedbefore,thepress
freedomwas a utopian thought by itself. As David Samuels, an American non-fiction writer,best
known for long-form journalism and essays, writes about the press not having any police itself
(Samuels2002:58).HethengoesfurtherbystipulatingthiswasaleftoverfromtheVietnamWar,
sincetheAmericangovernmentconnectedthe lossofthewarto thetelevision (ibid.:59).Though
there wasa strictpolicy concerning whatcould be filmedandwhatnot, there still wasextensive
televisioncoverage,whichthenresultedinanunderstandingofthewar(McCombs2004:124).The
publicaffectionstowardsthewargrew,allbecauseofthepoliticalinfluencestowardsthemedia.
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Chapter3
POLITICS,NEWSANDENTERTAINMENTINTERTWINED
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Theintertwinementofpolitics,newsandentertainment
Whentakingintoaccountthefactthatthemilitary,inotherwordsthepoliticians,wereinfluencing
the broadcasts may taste a little bit weird at times. However, the presence of underlying
propagandistic messages in news broadcasts and entertainment is something that is an ongoing
processineverydaylifeandthathasbeentheresincethebeginningwhentelevisionbecamepopular.
Theassumptioncouldbemadethatpoliticalpowerwielderswoulddoanythingtoconquerthesouls
ofthemass.ThisisnotsomethingthatonlyhappensintheUnitedStatesbutcanbecharacterizedas
a globalphenomenon.Popularbroadcast channels like FOX, TheBBCand Al Jazeera, butalso the
DutchbroadcastchannelslikeVeronicaandNet5,andmanymorearepartofthisinfluentialprocess.
Tokeepitorganizedandclear,theUnitedStateswillbetakenasapointofinterest.Mainlybecause
ofthevariousbroadcastchannelsandmanyexamplesthatcouldbegiven.Tostartoffwithacentury
ofhistoryrelatedtoentertainmentwillbecoveredwhereseveralexamplesandcriticalnotestowards
theintertwiningofpoliticsandentertainmentwillbegiven.
Acenturyofentertainment
With the introduction of the television and the outbreak of the Second World War, Disneys
involvementwithreality-basedfilmsbecameadailyfeedforpropagandisticmessages.Someofthe
mostinfluentialmessageswerecommunicated,orinotherwords,injectedintothemasswherethe
studiobecamea production centrefor propaganda films (Riper2011: 5). Oneof themost famous
propagandashortswasDerFuehrersFacewhereDonaldDuckwaslivingadepressinglifeofonly
workingandhearinglies,placedintheThirdReich(WaltDisney1942).Theunderlyingmessagewas
that the wonderful promisesmadebyHitler were nothing more than lies. The fact that itwas a
cartoonmakesitratherinteresting.Sincethepurevalueofentertainmenthasbeenwidelyspokenof,
itstillremainedpurepropaganda.
These days there are shows like FamilyGuy, The Simpsons andAmericanDad,which are
tryingtomakeastatementtowardstheAmericansociety,andprobablytherestoftheworld.Itvaries
frommockingthedifferentsidesofthepoliticalinstitutionswithintheUnitedStatesuptotheclear
referencestodictatorsandworldleaders.Thefunnythinghowever,thatshouldbenoticed,isthefact
thattheseseriesareallpartofthebroadcastchannelcalledFOX.FOX,abroadcastchannelthathas
beencalledmanynameslikeright-wingpropagandamachine,isoneofthemanyexampleswhere
newsand entertainment arecombinedwithpropagandisticthoughts(Outfoxed2004). Besidesthe
factthatFOXhasbeencalledmanynames,thedocumentaryOutfoxeddidagreatefforttopinpoint
thedifferentaspectsofintertwinementbetweenpoliticalinfluencesandthemediainthebroadest
context(ibid.).Althoughithastobeseenasasemi-complottheory,thedocumentaryindeeddoessay
somethingabouthowmediaandpoliticalinfluencesareintertwinedwitheachother.
NotonlyFOXwastryingtomakeastatementtowardstheAmericanpublic,aswellastherestoftheworld,ABCisalsoknownforthiskindofbehaviour.Withthelaunchoftheanimatedseries
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called SouthPark, ThatsMy Bushand Lil Bush, theseanimated series were playing a big role in
appealing to the liberals, conservatives, the cynicalpeople and all the sceptics in-between (Jones
2010:8).Thenumerous referencestowardsongoingwarsandreligionsarepresentinalmostevery
episode.Butmoreimportantly,thesereferencesrepresentahybridcombinationofbothhumoristic,
satiricalelementsandmodernpropaganda.Somethingthatispresentalotofthesedaysinthemedia
landscape, and when thinking about the dj vu-like experience, was already part of the early
adoptionofthetelevisionandotherdifferentmedia.Sincethisisasmallpartoftheenormouspuzzle
wehavetodealwith,itisalsoimportanttodiscussthemoreseriousbroadcasts,inotherwords,the
news.Wherethenotionofseriousandvaliditycanbetwistedanddiscussed.
Thediscourseoffear
WhentheterroristicattackontheWorldTradeCenterandthePentagontookplaceon11September2001,thenewscoverageoftheUnitedStatesafterwardswasmainlyfocussedonterrorism.Inorder
toget theAmericanpeople into moving towards theunderstandingandacceptance ofanewwar
againstterrorism,theyhadtobeconvinced.Thefirstbigsteptowardsthatgoalwasaspeechgiven
by former president George W. Bush, who declared the War on Terror. This speech was aired
throughouttheworld,sothateverybodycouldseeit.Ifitwasnotlive,itwouldhavebeenamodified
versioninanewsbroadcasts.
The power of television to influence opinion throughout the world is well documented.
Someonemightaskwhethertelevisionnewsdoeshaveaneffectregardingtheshapingofopinions.
This canbe seenas a rhetoric questionsince theobviouspolitical agendaswithin the functionof
television news can beperceived as clear facts.By addressing certain topics, such asthe war on
terrorism, television emphasizes on feelings. But it is pretty dangerous to assume that a single
television news manager of a broadcast channel is regulating the news in order of the different
political influential people. With the rise of the Internet, publics cannot escape these influential
processes,inawayitmayevenbecomeworse.Sinceeverybodycanpostsomethingonlineifheor
shewants that to,itisa mediumwitha lotofpotentialtowardspropagandisticstatements.Itmay
seem clear that the major media empires and ongoing changing of electronic technology will
eventuallydeterminethefutureoftelevisionnewsandmayaffectitinunforeseenways.
Furthermore,themaintainingofaformalandroutine-likeintimaterelationshipbythepress
towardspoliticalpowerispresentintodaystermsofmediapower.Thenewsmediacanthereforebe
seen as one of the most important actors in creating or representing the political reality, which
eventuallymightevenleadtosomescholarswhothinkthatthiswouldleadtoadditionalbranches
within governments (Cook 1998: 61). In a way the media can be seen as a political institution,
commercializedineveryway.
Newsandentertainmentmediaareperceivedas respectively seriousandtensionrelieving
partsofthetelevisionandmedialandscape,butcanbeseenaswellorganizeddistractions.Though
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theyprovidenumerousmomentswheretherecouldbelaughedbecauseofhumoroustalkshows,or
thefactthatsomethingimportanthashappened,theunderlyingstoriesarepresent,yetconcealedin
a way that only the subconscious can comprehend it (Baym 2005: 262). Nonetheless, news and
entertainmentconsistofhiddennarratives,whereonedoesthejobalittlebitbetterthantheother.
Thusitisimportanttonoticeswhatthedifferentmediacanproduceintermsofpoliticalinfluences.
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Conclusion
Televisionintheendcanbeseenasatruepoliticalinstrument.Byexaminingthetelevisionapparatus
asadoorsteptowardsthebroadermedialandscape,theintertwinementofmediaandpropaganda
was laid out. Thearchaeological perspectivemade it clear to understand how the television, and
othermedia,becametoolsfordifferentaspectofgovernmentsandcertainbroadcastchannels.What
staysinpeoplesmindsarethepicturesoftheoutsideworldthataresignificantlyinfluencedbythe
massmedia.Bythefactofwhatthecontentisandwhatthediscoursesurroundingitsaysaboutit.
Sincetheearliestformsofpropaganda,politicianswereabletowinoverthepublicaffections.
Duringthedifferentwarsdescribedinthispaper,wecanseeatrendinwhichmediabecamealot
moreinterestingforthisparticulargroup.Sincethemassmediaoftodayconnectsalotofpeopleto
eachother,thepossibilitiesseemendless.Thoughtheutopianvisionscreatedinthebeginningwith
theintroductionofthetelevisioncametrueuptoacertainlevel,thetelevisionneverbecamethe
mediumthatwouldsolvegloballyeffectedproblems.Byanymeans,itwouldonlycreateproblems.
These aspects also provide enormous implications, which go way beyond peoples
imaginations.Personalbehavioursarebeinginfluencedrangingfromwatchingshowsuptovotingon
electiondays.In lightof theseaspects,further researchhastobe conducted.A researchinlightof
howviewersperceive different aspectsof newsand entertainmentcanhelp us tounderstand the
impactof political influentialpropaganda,which in todaystermsis well hiddenwithin themedia.
Morefavourable,itisinterestingtoseehowthetelevisionwillholdupagainsttheInternet.Sincethe
Internetisalsopartofthebroadermedialandscapeandoffersavariousamountofwaystoconnect
tothepublicsemotions,itisthetaskforthetelevisiontocompetewiththisenormouspower.
Inconcluding,thetelevisionhasbeenafascinatingapparatusfromthebeginningandsinceit
hasbeenplacedinthecentreofthehouseholdsformanyyears,whichIthinkitwillbealsointhe
upcoming 15 years, it will be subjected to more research. Nonetheless, the television, and other
media,canbeseenaswarmachinesinordertowinovertheheartsofpeople.Thisisnotabadthing,
except theinfluentialpower provided througha certainmediumcannotbe seenas a longlasting
phenomenon.Thus,asinprevioushistoricalperiods,wewillhavetowaittillthattimecomeswhen
another one subjects a medium. Until that time arrives, we should all search for the underlying
messagesprovidedtousinafashionablyentertainingway.
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