Mish-mash

What did the world beyond Romania’s borders, and beyond those of the Soviet Bloc, look like on the big screen in 1956, when Romania was preparing to launch its first national television channel on New Years’ Eve, and the newsreel was still the only visual medium used for the circulation of international news?

When the Western world wasn’t being criticised vehemently, as seen in News in Pictures No. 23/1951: “Western Germany in the Shackles of Imperialism,” or cast into overly simplistic and polarizing narratives (e.g. News in Pictures No. 11/1955: “Contrasts,”), it was often crudely and unreservedly satirised by an audio track of partisan commentary overlaid onto whatever (otherwise benign) footage had recently been received from the international newsreels that Sahia exchanged material with. In this case, the material likely came from one of the French newsreels, such as Gaumont or Pathé.

The result is a subject like the one presented here—deliberately sensational in nature, echoing the popular style of early 20th-century newsreels, while perfectly aligning with the political agenda of the time. Its purpose is clear: to underscore the irreversible decadence of the West, framing it against the cultural backdrop of art and rock and roll.