Parry, K orcid.org/0000-0003-3654-6489 and Thumim, N (2017) 'When he’s in Afghanistan it’s like our world/his world’: mediating military experience. Media, Culture and Society, 39 (1). pp. 29-44. ISSN 0163-4437
Abstract
This article reports on a qualitative research project which invited those with direct experience – as serving personnel involved in media operations, military veterans and forces family members – to respond to a variety of media genres and discuss how such portrayals of military experience correspond with their own perceptions and their own representational practices. It is our contention that such mediations offer significant and interconnected spaces through which to explore negotiations of the meanings of military experience in contemporary public culture. Drawing on thematic analysis from our focus groups, we address a number of research questions: In what ways do the participants identify and engage with the various media portrayals; and how do they think this relates to the perceived public profile of the armed forces? How do they assess the capability of media texts to provide insights into the ‘realities’ of military experience (including emotionally charged moments of camaraderie and trauma)? In the multiple challenges and ambiguities heard within our groups we find complex and troubled senses of ‘militariness’, bound up with sometimes intense affectivities.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © The Author(s) 2016. This is an author produced version of a paper published in Media, Culture and Society. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | Afghanistan; comedy; documentary; focus group; mediation; military; veteran |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Cultures (Leeds) > School of Media & Communication (Leeds) |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number British Academy SG130350 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 01 Sep 2016 15:37 |
Last Modified: | 12 Apr 2017 06:26 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.1177/0163443716672298 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | SAGE Publications |
Identification Number: | 10.1177/0163443716672298 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:104128 |