Lights Camera War

Assesses the influence of worldwide media coverage on political decisions, and discusses how the political process adapts to new technologies

Lights Camera WAR! looks at 50 Indian war films from 1950 to 2020 across various Indian languages and examines their balance between entertainment and history. It looks at factors such as the real history behind the plots; the equipment and uniforms depicted; the use of music in the context and setting or, as often in Indian films, as a narrative device in the nautanki tradition, or for temporary relief; and the use of "filmy" coincidences, and other plot devices. The author's sometimes surprising view is that some Indian war films classified as "flops" deserved more respect, at least in that they have been authentic in the depiction of history while some "hits" leave much to be desired. There are also comparisons with Hollywood and the West, where war films form a distinct genre. Some Indian war films, including major hits, are clearly "inspired" by such Hollywood films, and what they lose (or gain) in transplanting to the Indian screen is also discussed. The book also includes small historical capsules for comparison with the on-screen action, to illustrate how far the Indian war film accurately presents the history, serves as 'masala' entertainment, or manages a balance between them.

Gordon Korman's classic, bestselling series celebrates its 35th anniversary! Macdonald Hall's ivy-covered buildings have housed and educated many fine young Canadians. But Bruno Walton and Boots O'Neal are far from being fine young Canadians. The roommates and best friends are nothing but trouble! Together they've snuck out after lights-out, swapped flags, kidnapped mascots . . . and that's only the beginning. Macdonald Hall has been chosen as the ideal setting for a Hollywood movie -- with superstar Jordie Jones! But when Bruno Walton and Boots O'Neal discover that the star just wants to be a normal guy, one who plays hockey, hangs out with friends and goes to dances, they decide to help Jordie out. Who would have guessed that a simple favour could go so wrong, so fast? Join two of Gordon Korman's most memorable characters in seven side-splitting, rip-roaring adventures! Macdonald Hall is the series that started it all, and thirty-five years later it remains a must-read for old fans and new, the young -- and the young at heart.

Celebrities in the United States have drawn significant attention and resources to the complex issue of human trafficking—a subject of feminist concern—and they are often criticized for promoting sensationalized and simplistic understandings of the issue. In this comprehensive analysis of celebrities’ anti-trafficking activism, however, Samantha Majic finds that this phenomenon is more nuanced: even as some celebrities promote regressive issue narratives and carceral solutions, others use their platforms to elevate more diverse representations of human trafficking and feminist analyses of gender inequality. Lights, Camera, Feminism? thus argues that we should understand celebrities as multilevel political actors whose activism is shaped and mediated by a range of personal and contextual factors, with implications for feminist and democratic politics more broadly.

Media Power, Media Politics examines the role and influence of the media in every sphere of American potitics. Organized thematically, the book analyzes the retationship among the media and key institutions, potitical actors, and nongovernmental entities, as wall as the role of the new media, media ethics, and foreign policy coverage. Writen clearly and concisely by leading schotars in the field, the chapters serve as broad overviews to the issues, white discussion questions and suggestions for further reading encourage deeper inquiry. Updated throughout, the second edition includes expanded coverage of the evotving role of new media, a new chapter on terrorism and the media, and new pedagogical exercises and featured interviews with journatists, bioggers, and media advisers. Book jacket.

This is the first academic analysis of the role of embedded media in the 2003 Iraq War, providing a concise history of US military public affairs management since Vietnam. In late summer 2002, the Pentagon considered giving the press an inside view of the upcoming invasion of Iraq. The decision was surprising, and the innovative "embedded media program" itself received intense coverage in the media. Its critics argued that the program was simply a new and sophisticated form of propaganda. Their implicit assumption was that the Pentagon had become better at its news management and had learned to co-opt the media. This new book tests this assumption, introducing a model of organizational learning and redraws the US military’s cumbersome learning curve in public affairs from Vietnam, Grenada, Panama, the Persian Gulf, Somalia, the Balkans to Afghanistan, examining whether past lessons were implemented in Iraq in 2003. Thomas Rid argues that while the US armed forces have improved their press operations, America’s military is still one step behind fast-learning and media-savvy global terrorist organizations. War and Media Operations will be of great interest to students of the Iraq War, media and war, propaganda, political communications and military studies in general.

Wars have dominated politics since history began. In the modern era most of what the media reports on foreign conflicts comes from a small band of war correspondents. As the furore over the Iraq, Afghan and now the Libyan wars demonstrates, Western governments and militaries often collude to keep their voters in the dark about the causes and the conduct of wars waged in their name. In this entertaining and unspun account of modern war reporting, the authors ask whether the media itself drives democracies to war. Or does it serve to constrain evil, ignorant and messianic leaders? Are the heirs of William Howard Russell, the first modern war reporter, watchdogs or lapdogs? In the age of Wikileaks and corrupt media empires, what is the political impact of war correspondents? Are they the heroes or harlots of their profession?

As the literature on military-media relations grows, it is informed by antagonism either from journalists who report on wars or from ex-soldiers in their memoirs. Academics who attempt more judicious accounts rarely have any professional military or media experience. A working knowledge of the operational constraints of both professions underscores Shooting the Messenger. A veteran war correspondent and think tank director, Paul L. Moorcraft has served in the British Ministry of Defence, while historian-by-training Philip M. Taylor is a professor of international communications who has lectured widely to the U.S. military and at NATO institutions. Some of the topics they examine in this wide-ranging history of military-media relations are: – the interface between soldiers and civilian reporters covering conflicts – the sometimes grey area between reporters' right or need to know and the operational security constraints imposed by the military – the military's manipulation of journalists who accept it as a trade-off for safer battlefield access – the resultant gap between images of war and their reality – the evolving nature of media technology and the difficulties—and opportunities—this poses to the military – journalistic performance in reporting conflict as an observer or a participant Moorcraft and Taylor provide a bridge over which each side can pass and a path to mutual understanding.