Website Analysis 05 WWII PBS (The War by Ken Burns)
THE WAR (Ken Burns PBS)
Major Divisions of the Website
A. AT HOME
1. War Production
One sidebar takes us to 43 war posters in the Search and Explore section
Another sidebar takes us to Senator Daniel Inouye of Hawaii
Sidebar on a newsreel about "Manpower"
Sidebar entitled See all “War Production” photographs and media in “Search &
Explore”»
2. Communication
a. News and Censorship
Samples of Ernie Pyle's correspondence
Fireside Chats
b. Letters and Diaries
Good material about V-Mail
See all “Correspondence ” photographs and media in “Search & Explore”»
c. Propaganda
Sidebar to "Why We Fight" movie
Sidebar See more war posters »
3. Family
Rosie the Riveter
War Rationing and Stamps
Sidebar See a selection of newspapers and other media »
Sidebars:
See all photographs and media on children in “Search & Explore”»
See all “Women's Roles” photographs and media in “Search & Explore”»
4. Civil Rights
a. Japanese Americans
Newsreel:“JapaneseRelocation”»
In defense of the decision to
intern 110,000 Japanese
Americans, the U.S.
government produced this
film. (9:25)
Sidebar: See all
photographs and media on
Japanese Americans in
“Search & Explore”»
b. Minorities
See all photographs and media on Latino & Native Americans in “Search &
Explore”»
See all photographs and media on African Americans in “Search & Explore”»
B. AT WAR
1. Life in the Infantry
Click through the personal recollections on the right-hand sidebar
Sidebar: See all “Infantry” photographs and media in “Search & Explore”»
2. Face of Battle
a. Training
“The Nazis Strike” »
This governmentsponsored “information
film” is chapter two of
Frank Capra's Why We
Fight series created to
motivate young soldiers
in training. (40:39)
See the first “Why We Fight” film and learn more about propaganda »
See all “Military Training” photographs and media in “Search & Explore”»
Eugene Sledge kept notes about his life as a soldier in a small Bible. Those notes
became the basis for his memoir With the Old Breed.
Read excerpts from Sledge’s memoir »
b. Combat
Sidebar: Role of Medics
Sidebar: See all “Combat” photographs and media in “Search & Explore”»
c. Aftermath
The War Department initially resisted the idea of bringing home America’s dead
because of the scale of the task and its $200 million cost. But on May 16, 1946,
Congress enacted Public Law 383, permitting families to request the return of sons and
husbands, either to a national cemetery or a private plot. They began coming home in
the fall of 1947. It took six years to complete the return and reburial program. Some
93,000 American dead from World War II remain buried in American cemeteries
overseas, their families content to allow them to lie among their comrades.
Sidebar:
Daniel Inouye »
Even a decorated
soldier in uniform
experienced racial
prejudice back home.
3. Timeline
Good photos as you click through each year.
4. Fighting for Democracy
a. Japanese Americans
See all photographs and media on Japanese Americans in “Search & Explore”»
b. African Americans
Daniel Inouye »
Transfusions of AfricanAmerican blood saved
his life.
See all photographs and media on African Americans in “Search & Explore”»
c. Latino and Native Americans
Navajo Code Talkers
Carlson's Raiders
See all photographs and media on Latino Americans in “Search & Explore”»
See all photographs and media on Native Americans in “Search & Explore”»
C. WITNESSES
This section does biographies of key people in the film. Since we won't be watching the
film, this section is of little help to us.
D. SEARCH AND EXPLORE
Search and Explore Section: Themes and Topics
SUBJECTS
African Americans (78)
Children (50)
Combat (514)
Correspondence (56)
Home Front (279)
Infantry (331)
Internment Camps (36)
Japanese Americans (86)
Latino Americans (15)
Medics & Medical Treatment (61)
Military Training (54)
Native Americans (9)
News & Media (81)
POWs (68)
Propaganda (59)
Rationing & Recycling (34)
Segregation (56)
Social Change (47)
War Production (82)
Women’s Roles (83)
MEDIA
Archival Film & Audio (14)
Diaries & Memoirs (5)
Home Movies (1)
Interviews (70)
Letters, Vmail, Telegrams
Newspapers (23)
Photos: Battlefront (331)
Photos: Home front (160)
Photos: Personal (164)
Posters (43)
WAR clips: Battlefront (24)
WAR clips: Home front (21)
BATTLES
Pearl Harbor
The Philippines (Bataan)
Guadalcanal
North Africa
Sicily & invasion of Italy
The Air War
Tarawa
Italy (Monte Cassino)
Italy (Anzio)
D-Day (June 6, 1944)
Normandy
Saipan
(15)
Philippine Sea (Marianas Turkey Shoot)
Northern Italy (442nd/100th RCT)
Holland (Operation Market Garden)
Peleliu
Hurtgen Forest
Vosges Mountains (The Lost Battalion)
Philippines (Leyte Gulf)
Battle of the Bulge
Iwo Jima
Firebombing (Germany & Japan)
The Holocaust
Okinawa
USS Indianapolis
Atomic Bomb
PEOPLE
Walter Ehlers
John Hope Franklin
Paul Fussell
Daniel Inouye
Joe Medicine Crow
Ernie Pyle
Sascha Weinzheimer
From Archival Film and Audio
14 records found for “Archival Film & Audio”
Sort results by...
FDR: Addressing Congress »
Except of Roosevelt's last address to Congress.
FDR: Prayer for D-Day »
President Roosevelt leads the nation in prayer for the cross-channel invasion. (excerpt)
FDR: The Day of Infamy speech »
President Roosevelt delivers the news of the attack on Pearl Harbor to the citizens across America. (excerpt)
FDR: The Four Freedoms »
Excerpt of Roosevelt's State of the Union address, citing the four freedoms.
FDR: The Post-war world »
Excerpt from one of Roosevelt's first fireside chats.
It's Everybody's War »
A plea, narrated by Henry Fonda, for increased committment by Americans to win the war. (15:07)
Source: Produced by Twentieth Century-Fox
Japanese Relocation »
U.S. Government-produced film defending the World War II internment of Japanese-American citizens. (9:25)
Source: Produced by the U.S. Office of War Information
MacArthur makes good on his promise »
Partial newsreel in which MacArthur speaks "I shall return" and about servicemen receiving V-Mail.
Source: Produced by Universal Studios
Manpower »
Commissioned by the U.S. Office of War Information, this newsreel shows the battle for industrial production in World
War II. (8:32)
Source: Produced by the U.S. Office of War Information
Newsreel: Air Army invades »
Example of a newsreel viewed on the home front. This clip contains gliders in action, artillery fire, a flying boat and Ike's
addressing the troops.
Source: Produced by Universal Studios
The Fighting Lady »
Portrait of life aboard a WWII aircraft carrier that includes a night-time raid and confrontation with the Imperial fleet.
(61:00)
Source: Produced by William Wyler
Why We Fight: Prelude to War »
Chapter I of Frank Capra's Why We Fight series, "Prelude to War" was commissioned by the United States Government
to explain first to the soldiers, then to the general public, America's involvement in World War II. (52:21)
Source: Produced and Directed by Frank Capra
Why We Fight: The Nazis Strike »
Chapter II of Frank Capra's Why We Fight series, "The Nazis Strike" summarizes Adolph Hitler's plan for world
conquest and Germany's full scale preparation in pursuit of this end. (40:39)
Source: Produced and Directed by Frank Capra
With the Marines at Tarawa »
Documentary short film depicting the harrowing battle between the U.S. Marines and the Japanese for control of the
Pacific Island of Tarawa. (18:00)
Source: Directed and produced by Louis Hayward for the Office of War Information/Warner Bros.
Pictures
The wealth of themes explored in THE WAR offer an extraordinary educational
opportunity for your classroom. The materials on this web site are specifically designed
to help teachers use THE WAR and its themes not only to teach the history of the
Second World War, but also to bring the powerful medium of storytelling into the
classroom.
Lesson Plans »
This web site includes 14 lesson plans developed to help teachers use THE WAR in the
classroom. Classroom activities are appropriate for students in grades 9-12 and cover
many of the major themes addressed in the film. Many lesson plans also incorporate
video clips from the film as well as additional resources found on this site. All the
lessons address national teaching standards listed within each plan.
Snapshot Activities »
Because THE WAR is so rich in educational themes and we know that teachers have a
limited amount of time, in this section you will find a series of easy-to-use "snapshot
activities" for classroom use. Each snapshot activity contains a brief overview along with
activity ideas teachers can use to create lessons tailored to individual class curriculum
and teaching style.
Search & Explore »
THE WAR web site contains a comprehensive Search and Explore database with
more than 800 photographs; 200 primary source documents and artifacts; 100 videos
including clips from THE WAR, historical footage, web exclusive interviews, home
movies, and historic newsreels.
The Search and Explore section is designed so that students can download assets for
projects, reports, blogs, web sites and multimedia presentations. To facilitate use by
students we have developed a Favorites tool that allows students to select videos,
photos, and artifacts for an online “Favorites list”. This list can be saved or e-mailed to
a friend (or teacher). Students can “name” their lists and write a brief description of the
collection.
The Power of Story »
PBS and Florentine Films have produced The Power of Story, a PDF handbook for
student documentary production. The documentary process provides an excellent
model for engaging students in seeking out and understanding history in their own
communities while using the technologies that are part and parcel of their lives. This
guide is written for students — to walk them through the nuts and bolts of making a
documentary. It can easily be adapted for classroom use.
Other sections of this web site that may be of interest to teachers:
Explore an online episode guide to THE WAR
Download a Viewer’s Guide PDF
See a World War II resource list
Explore a World War II Timeline