Film on War

See also: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/focuson/film/

Focus On Film is a jointly funded project by The National Archives and the South East Grid for Learning. This site presents film as a historical source and considers its advantages and disadvantages as evidence for the past. Like all historical sources films must be investigated and evaluated carefully. How far do they present an accurate record of an event and how far do they reflect the views of the film-maker, or indeed, the sponsor of the film?

There is always the question of exactly how independent a TV news report is. However, in the later 20th century there were many news networks and in countries like the USA and UK there was no official censorship, except for matters of national security. This clip is an interesting example of the type of reporting which became highly controversial because it was said that the style and tone of the reporting shaped opinions about the Vietnam war rather than simply reporting events from the war.

Can you believe your eyes? : Using film as evidence in history.

Many people take the moving image for granted. They frequently assume that the images they see are a true and accurate portrayal of the events of âwhat is happeningâ. Of course this can be in part explained by the fact that the visual image is far more seductive than the written word. This is because we impose our own meaning on what we see. The idea that âI wonâ²t believe it until I see itâ is very significant here.