As we prepare for the possibility of another war with Iraq, I keep reading about how the military manipulated news coverage of the Gulf War (mostly by limiting access to it). Gulf War restrictions on the press are almost always portrayed as the military's (over)reaction to one of the "lessons" it learned from Vietnam ("The Uncensored War," as the title of a book by Daniel Hallin puts it). But in fact, as George Roeder shows in "The Censored War," government (although not necessarily military) control of the visual imagery of war is nothing new. Although "The Censored War" is a bit of a misnomer (the book is more about the actual portrayal of WWII and government attempts to influence its imagery than it is about government denial of access to certain images), Roeder succeeds in demonstrating a thorough-going effort by the government during WWII to control how the war was presented and to emphasize imagery that suited its propaganda purposes.

"The Censored War" is divided into four chapters, each followed by a "visual essay" (a collection of photos, ads and other visual material, with captions discussing how the images relate to the themes explored in the text). Only the first chapter is really devoted to subjects and images that were "censored" in the sense that the military withheld them from publication (although that subject arises again in some of the other chapters). The remainder of the book is (largely) devoted to the imagery that *was* made available and what it communicated about American society, the home front, and the motivations behind the war effort. The material I found most interesting concerned the portrayal of race, gender and class differences (or the alleged lack of same) during WWII (with the government trying to say "we're all in this together" to African-Americans, women and the working class without offending the country's racists, men and business/patrician class).

In the concluding chapters, Roeder draws attention to the way that WWII polarized our vision, portraying American and Allied troops, civilians, cultures and goals as uniformly good and the Axis' forces as uniformly evil. I think he over-emphasizes the formative role of WWII propaganda in our tendency to see conflict in black-and-white terms -- surely the vilification of the Other goes far back in human history -- but he rightly credits those photographers who attempted to portray the war in more ambiguous terms. He draws interesting parallels between the way propaganda was used in WWII and how it was turned on its head in Vietnam (although I think he goes too far in suggesting that a more honest portrayal of WWII would have made people question our involvement in Vietnam earlier). Roeder believes that image-makers have an important role to play in revealing the truth, and that only when we know (as much as we can) the full, ambiguous truth can we make good decisions. "Those making, answering, or resisting the call to war would do well to be sure they are as certain of their facts as will be the mourners who greet the returning coffins." (156) We can only hope that the current powers will heed this caution.

Roeder's text is well-written and to the point. The selection of images for the "visual essays" is thoughtful, striking and illustrates the themes discussed in the text. The limitation to visual images is a strength in that it allows Roeder to keep a tight focus, but it is a weakness to the extent that it prevents Roeder from giving a full picture of official control over the presentation of the war. Still, this is a very useful and revealing book, recommended to anyone interested in the experience of WWII or in government propaganda efforts.

Roeder offers his reader a concise tour of World War II through the images it generated and how the government manipulated those images. He emphasizes the differences between media coverage of WWII and WWI, and outlines the roles of all the major media titans of the day, including the Office of War Information, FDR, and Hollywood to name a few. How did the government address social issues of the day through the pictures it distributed of WWII? Was the Office of War Information filled with pencil-pushing bureaucrats or socially conscious liberals with an envelope-pushing agenda? Roeder answers these questions and more in a style that is accessible for academics and amateurs alike. Each chapter is followed by a photo essay with censored and uncensored pics with descriptions. The effect... captivating.

This is an extremely insightful book into the propaganda tactics of the Roosevelt administration during the second world war. The Office of War Information takes the spot light as Roeder outlines its influence on posters, publications, and the motion picture industry. This book provides a great basis for studying the shift in public opinion from the end of the world war era into the cold war. Very detailed information conveyed in a chronological and cohesive format. This was assigned reading for History 266 at the University of Michigan.