What words come to mind to describe the soldier?

How do the children in the picture appear to feel about

the soldier?

What attitude toward war and soldiers does the picture

convey?

How do you imagine young Americans would have

responded to this image in 1919?

Cover of Saturday Evening Post Magazine – February 22, 1919

What words come to mind to describe the soldiers?

What attitude toward war and soldiers does the picture

convey?

How do you imagine young Americans would have

responded to this image in 1966?

How did the representation of war by the American media change between World

War I and the Vietnam Conflict?

Cover of Life Magazine – February 11, 1966

“Television news came of age on the eve of Vietnam. The CBS and NBC evening news broadcasts took their present form in September, 1963, expanding from fifteen minutes to half an hour…The first exclusive stories the expanded shows were able to broadcast had to do with Vietnam….Two years later, American troops went to war under the glare of the television spotlight. Vietnam was America’s first true televised war”. – Daniel C. Hallin “The Uncensored War- The Media and Vietnam”

• During what 5-year period did television ownership in the U.S. grow

fastest?

How many Americans had access to television news programming in 1950?

1970?

Vietnam War Footage

The Draft• In 1969, a “lottery” was held to select young

men from the age of 18 to 26 to fight in the war.

What was the voting age in 1969?

The first 122 dates drawn would be drafted to go to

Vietnam.- The next 122 dates (look for

numbers 123 thru 244) “may” have

been drafted.- If you were #s 245 to 366 you

were spared from being drafted (until the next

draft lottery was needed)

• Based on your birthday, would you have been drafted?

• Look at the chart you completed for your warm-up, how did some draftees avoid serving in the war?

• What did this mean to men who had a higher lottery number?

• Imagine that you are going to write some music concerning your feelings about the war.

• What would the lyrics be about?

• What might the music sound like?

War by Edwin Starr

Ohio by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young

Feel Like I’m Fixin’ to Die Rag by Country Joe and the Fish

Imagine you are an 18yr old involved in the anti-war movement and are about to be drafted.• Write a letter to a friend that

addresses the following:–How songs/tv (media) have shaped

your perceptions of the war.