Edward R. Murrow
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ziasudraThis is London
Excerpts, This is London, 1940
Setting: World War II, London
Theme: War, survival, bravery, heroism
Type: Radio broadcast
Murrow was working for CBS as a foreign correspondent. This portion of This is London covers his reporting from August 18, 1940 to October 17, 1940.
Notable Quotes:
"This is London."
~ This is Murrow's signature phrase, heard by millions over CBS radio broadcast programs.
"Those people were calm and courageous."
"There was no bravado, no loud voices, only a quiet acceptance of the situation. To me those people were incredibly brave and calm. They are the unknown heroes of this war."
~ One of the reoccurring themes in Murrow's broadcasts was the calmness of the people. London was under relentless attack, but people still tried to live normal lives the best they could.
"If the people who rule Britain are made of the same stuff as the little people I have seen today, if they understand the stuff of which the people who work with their hands are made, and if they trust them, then the defense of Britain will be something of which men will speak with awe and admiration so long as the English language survives. Politicians have repeatedly called this a people's war. These people deserve well of their leaders."
~ Another of Murrow's themes is that of political and social hierarchies. There was the ruling class, the elite of England, and then there was the "little people." Murrow was primarily interested in the "little people."
"They've become more human, less reserved; more talkative and less formal. There's almost a small-town atmosphere about the place. Sometimes strangers speak to you in the bus or subways. I've even heard a conversation between total strangers in a railway car—something which was unthinkable in peacetime."
~ This reminds me of New York City after 9/11. And, just like New York a few weeks later, post-war London returned (still retained?) back to class distinctions and socioeconomic inequality.
"This night bombing is serious and sensational. It makes headlines, kills people, and smashes property; but it doesn't win wars."
"Walking down the street a few minutes ago, shrapnel stuttered and stammered on the rooftops and from underground came the sound of singing, and the song was My Blue Heaven."
~ Literary device: alliteration. Lots of "s" sounds. Sound detail. Vivid imagery.
"We found that like everything else in this world the kind of protection you get from the bombs on London tonight depends on how much money you have. On the other hand, the most expensive dwelling places here do not necessarily provide the best shelters, but certainly they are the most comfortable."
~ Two sides of the class tension: rich people get "better" protection. But better does not necessarily means safer. In life and death situations, wealth means little.
"So many acts of heroism are being performed by men who were just doing their daily jobs."
"They don't consider themselves to be heroes. There's a job of work to be done and they're doing it as best they can. They don't know themselves how long they can stand up to life."
~ The theme of nameless, accidental heroes. If it weren't for war, they would simply be faces in the crowd.
"There were two women who gossiped across the narrow strip of tired brown grass that separated their two houses. They didn't have to open their kitchen windows in order to converse. The glass had been blown out."
~ People were unphased by the destruction of properties due to the bombings. Life went on as usual.
Bombing of Berlin
Broadcast by Edward R. Murrow, Columbia Broadcasting System, December 3, 1943.
Setting: World War II, Berlin.
Theme: War, its colors, emotions, and horrors.
Type: Radio broadcast
"The sun was going down, and its red glow made rivers of lakes of fire on top of the clouds. Down to the southward, the clouds piled up to form castles, battlements, and whole cities—all tinged with red."
"It was a great golden slow-moving meteor slanting toward the earth."
"D-Dog was filled with an unhealthy white light."
"The small incendiaries were going down like a fistful of white rice thrown on a piece of black velvet."
"There below were more incendiaries, glowing white and then turning red."
"By this time, all those patches of white on black had turned yellow."
~ Murrow uses color and light in his descriptions. This enables his audience to picture what is described.
"Berlin was a kind of orchestrated hell, a terrible symphony of light and flame. It isn't a pleasant kind of warfare—the men doing it speak of a job.... Men die in the sky while others are roasted alive in their cellars. Berlin last night wasn't a pretty sight. This is a calculated, remorseless campaign of destruction."
~ War in its full terror. Description of the German soldiers' fate evoke emotion (pity?).
Excerpts, This is London, 1940
Setting: World War II, London
Theme: War, survival, bravery, heroism
Type: Radio broadcast
Murrow was working for CBS as a foreign correspondent. This portion of This is London covers his reporting from August 18, 1940 to October 17, 1940.
Notable Quotes:
"This is London."
~ This is Murrow's signature phrase, heard by millions over CBS radio broadcast programs.
"Those people were calm and courageous."
"There was no bravado, no loud voices, only a quiet acceptance of the situation. To me those people were incredibly brave and calm. They are the unknown heroes of this war."
~ One of the reoccurring themes in Murrow's broadcasts was the calmness of the people. London was under relentless attack, but people still tried to live normal lives the best they could.
"If the people who rule Britain are made of the same stuff as the little people I have seen today, if they understand the stuff of which the people who work with their hands are made, and if they trust them, then the defense of Britain will be something of which men will speak with awe and admiration so long as the English language survives. Politicians have repeatedly called this a people's war. These people deserve well of their leaders."
~ Another of Murrow's themes is that of political and social hierarchies. There was the ruling class, the elite of England, and then there was the "little people." Murrow was primarily interested in the "little people."
"They've become more human, less reserved; more talkative and less formal. There's almost a small-town atmosphere about the place. Sometimes strangers speak to you in the bus or subways. I've even heard a conversation between total strangers in a railway car—something which was unthinkable in peacetime."
~ This reminds me of New York City after 9/11. And, just like New York a few weeks later, post-war London returned (still retained?) back to class distinctions and socioeconomic inequality.
"This night bombing is serious and sensational. It makes headlines, kills people, and smashes property; but it doesn't win wars."
"Walking down the street a few minutes ago, shrapnel stuttered and stammered on the rooftops and from underground came the sound of singing, and the song was My Blue Heaven."
~ Literary device: alliteration. Lots of "s" sounds. Sound detail. Vivid imagery.
"We found that like everything else in this world the kind of protection you get from the bombs on London tonight depends on how much money you have. On the other hand, the most expensive dwelling places here do not necessarily provide the best shelters, but certainly they are the most comfortable."
~ Two sides of the class tension: rich people get "better" protection. But better does not necessarily means safer. In life and death situations, wealth means little.
"So many acts of heroism are being performed by men who were just doing their daily jobs."
"They don't consider themselves to be heroes. There's a job of work to be done and they're doing it as best they can. They don't know themselves how long they can stand up to life."
~ The theme of nameless, accidental heroes. If it weren't for war, they would simply be faces in the crowd.
"There were two women who gossiped across the narrow strip of tired brown grass that separated their two houses. They didn't have to open their kitchen windows in order to converse. The glass had been blown out."
~ People were unphased by the destruction of properties due to the bombings. Life went on as usual.
Bombing of Berlin
Broadcast by Edward R. Murrow, Columbia Broadcasting System, December 3, 1943.
Setting: World War II, Berlin.
Theme: War, its colors, emotions, and horrors.
Type: Radio broadcast
"The sun was going down, and its red glow made rivers of lakes of fire on top of the clouds. Down to the southward, the clouds piled up to form castles, battlements, and whole cities—all tinged with red."
"It was a great golden slow-moving meteor slanting toward the earth."
"D-Dog was filled with an unhealthy white light."
"The small incendiaries were going down like a fistful of white rice thrown on a piece of black velvet."
"There below were more incendiaries, glowing white and then turning red."
"By this time, all those patches of white on black had turned yellow."
~ Murrow uses color and light in his descriptions. This enables his audience to picture what is described.
"Berlin was a kind of orchestrated hell, a terrible symphony of light and flame. It isn't a pleasant kind of warfare—the men doing it speak of a job.... Men die in the sky while others are roasted alive in their cellars. Berlin last night wasn't a pretty sight. This is a calculated, remorseless campaign of destruction."
~ War in its full terror. Description of the German soldiers' fate evoke emotion (pity?).
