World War II

Today I want to share a link to a USAToday article “Learning About ‘The War,’” which puts some finishing notes on the airing of the 15-hour documentary on PBS.

Tonight most PBS stations will begin the second airing of the series, which will continue weekly for seven weeks. It’s a good opportunity for people like me who missed a couple of episodes to catch up with something much less than the marathon intensity of the original airing.

I’d also encourage everyone to have a look at the article “PBS Affiliates, Schools Add to Veterans History Project.” We have to face the scary statistic that more than 1,000 WWII vets die every day — and take more than 1,000 personal stories with them. The airing of “The War” has jump-started a grass roots efforts to collect that material before it disappears forever.

You can visit the Veterans History Project directly and learn how to participate. There are five steps:

- registering with an online form
- downloading a field kit
- preparing for the interview
- conducting the interview
- submitting the collection to the Library of Congress

This project is open to first-hand accounts from:

- World War I
- World War II
- Korean War
- Vietnam War
- Persian Gulf War
- Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts
- civilian supporters

The last category includes war industry workers, USO workers, flight instructors, medical volunteers, and folks who contributed to a war effort in similar ways.

The Veterans History Project accepts video and audio in several formats (see the site for specific details) but the submission must be at least 30 minutes in length. They also collect original narratives such as diaries or journals provided they are more than 20 pages in length, letters (ten or more in each collection), original photos, and artwork. (Again, see the site for full explanations.)

They will not accept photocopies, physical memorabilia (like medals or uniforms), and framed materials but do offer an extensive list of repositories that will accept such items.

Regardless of any controversy the documentary may have generated, if it stimulates renewed interest in World War II studies in our public schools and encourages the active collection of World War II material and first-person accounts, Ken Burns has performed a real service.

If you’re interested in reading my previous posts about “The War” in the order in which they appeared on the blog, here are the links:

- Ken Burns, The War - It’s Hard to Watch
- Let’s Wait to Criticize Ken Burns
- Debate about “The War” Continues
- WWII, Ken Burns, and a Word on Historiography

My final word on the experience of “The War” is positive. As I indicated in my previous comments, you have to take the documentary for what it is and not expect it to be a perfect, encyclopedic treatment of a vast and complex subject. In a massive body of World War II treatments, “The War” is a good addition — not the last word, but a good word in a dialog that will continue through many more generations.

WWII, World War II, Ken Burns, The War, Veterans History Project