War Is Beautiful: The New York Times Pictorial Guide to the Glamour of Armed Conflict*
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.87 (869 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 1576877590 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 112 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2015-12-05 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
* (in which the author explains why he no longer reads The New York Times)Bestselling author David Shields analyzed over a decade’s worth of front-page war photographs from The New York Times and came to a shocking conclusion: the photo-editing process of the “paper of record,” by way of pretty, heroic, and lavishly aesthetic image selection, pulls the wool over the eyes of its readers; Shields forces us to face not only the the media's complicity in dubious and catastrophic military campaigns but our own as well. This powerful media mouthpiece, the mighty Times, far from being a check on governmental power, is in reality a massive amplifier for its dark forces by virtue of the way it aestheticizes warfare. Anyone baffled by the willful American involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan can’t help but see in this book how eagerly and invariably the Times led the way in making the case for these wars through the manipulation of
Challenges the indisputable authority of the paper by claiming The Times has sanctified, eroticized and glamorized warfare.—LENS CULTUREShields believes that the images the New York Times chooses set a tone for the rest of the media landscape, and that they can wreak havoc when it comes to an informed populace’s acceptance of the horrors of war.—HOPES & FEARSThe disturbingly graphic book follows the New York Times' war reporting for more than a decade, exposing the institution's tendency to glamorize armed combat to the point of manipulation.—THE VILLAGE VOICEThe images tha
. The recipient of Guggenheim and NEA fellowships, Shields has published essays and stories in the New York Times Magazine, Harper’s, Esquire, Yale Review, Village Voice, Salon, Slate, McSweeney’s, and Believer. David Shields is the internationally bestselling author
This book is beautiful, mostly. EmmaGH I heard the author interviewed on NPR and was intrigued. His thesis is that beautiful photos in the NY Times - front page in color - have helped to support wars. Although he focuses primarily on recent war in the Middle East, the brief text includes comments dating back to action (or inaction) by the Times founder, Arthur Ochs, He also discusses - briefly and somewhat dismissively - photo c. As a collection of images it is beautiful. As an argument, no so much. I read this book with mixed feelings. I see part of what Shields says, that the artistry of the war photographs distracts from the horror of war itself. (Note, all of the photos appeared in editions of the New York Times, and accompanied war news items.) At the same time, photography is a hobby of mine and I was struck by the beauty and artistry of much of what was included in the book (Yes. Five Stars Life Changing, Gorgeous. Read all the blurbs, and quotes to get the full value out of this book.