Abstract

There is a basic, and erroneous, belief about the newsreel, ie it was ‘neither journalistic nor artistic’ (in the documentary sense). It can, though be argued that it was both but poorly so. It was, rather, facile journalism and uninspired documentary. And moreover it reflected centuries of efforts to illustrate the news, from woodcut and photography, to film, radio and television. Newsreels are not so easily dismissed.