FAQ
logo of Jagiellonian University in Krakow

Reality is unrealistic. Dziennikarska relacja jako źródło narracji o wojnie w miniserialu HBO „Generation Kill”

Publication date: 29.06.2016

Media Research Issues, 2016, Volume 59, Issue 1 (225), pp. 135 - 149

https://doi.org/10.4467/2299-6362PZ.16.010.5187

Authors

Paweł Płaneta
Institute of Journalism and Social Communication of the Jagiellonian University, prof. Stanisława Łojasiewicza 4 30-348 Kraków
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9757-9570 Orcid
All publications →

Titles

Reality is unrealistic. Dziennikarska relacja jako źródło narracji o wojnie w miniserialu HBO „Generation Kill”

Abstract

Reality Is Unrealistic. Journalist Report as a Source of Narrative about War
in HBO’s Miniseries “Generation Kill”


The popular HBO mini-series “Generation Kill” is a successful attempt to develop a new formula of narrative fiction founded on the journalistic report – a hybrid, quasi-documentary narrative based on “explanatory” as well as “participatory” modes. The radically realistic audiovisual representation of the events was thus constructed. The creators of the series – deriving from the reportage of Evan Wright – raised important social issues. We are dealing with an interesting perspective on the generation of “disposable children”, young Americans shaped by the global pop culture; young marines operating in Iraq of 2003 are ‘elite killers’, ‘devil dogs’ of the USA, disillusioned to the world of politics and war. The series also shows the chaos of war, during which even the most powerful military machine in the world, the US military – in some cases – fails. Despite its critical sound, the series does not impress of didactic moralizing tone. Both HBO and Wright’s book are characterized by a complete lack of political correctness, which gives way to realism of the characters and events.

 

References

Barnouw E. (1993). Documentary. A History of the Non-Fiction Film. New York, Oxford.

Boden D., Molotch H. (1994). The Compulsion of Proximity. W: R. Friedland, D. Boden (red.). NowHere: Space, Time and Modernity (s. 257–286). London.

Brokaw T. (2000). The Greatest Generation. Random House Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

Clover C. (2004). Natural-born killers will never win hearts and minds. The Financial
Times
, 25.06.2004 [http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/b81427d4-c70e-11d8-a07a-00000e2511c8.html#axzz3xSdvj6qN; 10.01.2016].

Ellis J.C., McLane B.A (2009). A New History of Documentary Film. New York, London.

Grant B.K., Sloniowski J. (1998) (red.). Documenting the Documentary. Close Readings of Documentary Film and Video. Detroit.

Grierson J. (1966). The First Principles of Documentary. W: F. Hardy (red.). Grierson on Documentary (s. 145–156). London.

Halpern S. (2008). The War We Don’t Want to See. The New York Review of Books [http://www.nybooks.com/articles/2008/12/18/the-war-we-dont-want-to-see/; 1.10.2016].

Hoskins A., O’Loughlin B. (2010). War and Media. The Emergence of Diffused War. Kindle Edition.

Hoy A.H. (2006). Wielka księga fotografii. Warszawa.

Luhmann N. (1989). Ecological Communication. Chicago.

Maass P. (2008). Situation Normal. What Generation Kill gets right about the invasion of Iraq [http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2008/07/situation_normal.single.html; 10.01.2016].

Merrin W. (2005). Baudrillard and the Media: A Critical Introduction. Cambridge.

Morris J.G. (2007). Zdobyć zdjęcie. Moja historia fotografii prasowej. Warszawa.

Nessen S.Ch., Lounsbury D.E., Hetz S.P. (2008). War Surgery in Afghanistan and Iraq: A Series of Cases (2003–2007). Dept. of the Army.

Nichols B. (2001). Introduction to Documentary. Bloomington.

Przylipiak M. (1994). Kino stylu zerowego. Gdańsk.

Przylipiak M. (2000). Poetyka kina dokumentalnego. Gdańsk.

Rose A. (2008). Generation Kill: Our Interview With Author Evan Wright And First Reco Marine Eric Kocher. Huffington Post [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/07/25/generation-kill-our-inter_n_114533.html; 10.01.2016].

Rosenblum N. (2005). Historia fotografii światowej. Bielsko-Biała.

Rothman W. (2010) (red.). Documentary Film Classics. Cambridge.

Silverstone R. (2007). Media and Morality: On the Rise of the Mediapolis. Cambridge.

Sontag S. (2004). Regarding the Torture of Others. The New York Times, 23.05.2004 [http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/23/magazine/regarding-the-torture-of-others.html?_r=0; 10.01.2016].

Warren L. (2006) (red.). Encyklopedia of Twentieth-Century Photography. New York, London.

Wright E. (2003). The Killer Elite. Rolling Stone, 26.06.2003 [http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/the-killer-elite-20030626; 10.01.2016].

Wright E. (2004). Generation Kill. Devil Dogs, Iceman, Captain America and the New Face of American War. New York.

Writing the Iraq War: The Notes, Photos, and Audio for “Generation Kill” [http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2012/12/writing-the-iraq-war-the-notes-photos-and-audio-for-generation-kill/266375/; 10.01.2016].

Information

Information: Media Research Issues, 2016, Volume 59, Issue 1 (225), pp. 135 - 149

Article type: Original article

Titles:

Polish:

Reality is unrealistic. Dziennikarska relacja jako źródło narracji o wojnie w miniserialu HBO „Generation Kill”

English:

Reality Is Unrealistic. Journalist Report as a Source of Narrative about War in HBO’s Miniseries “Generation Kill”

Authors

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9757-9570

Paweł Płaneta
Institute of Journalism and Social Communication of the Jagiellonian University, prof. Stanisława Łojasiewicza 4 30-348 Kraków
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9757-9570 Orcid
All publications →

Institute of Journalism and Social Communication of the Jagiellonian University, prof. Stanisława Łojasiewicza 4 30-348 Kraków

Published at: 29.06.2016

Article status: Open

Licence: None

Percentage share of authors:

Paweł Płaneta (Author) - 100%

Article corrections:

-

Publication languages:

Polish