- Steyerl talks about how the “unbroken belief” of the documentary form is challenged. What does Steyerl mean by this? Certain movies and films are based on a true story. How does truth inform fiction? How might fiction inform the truth?
Many may perceive documentaries to be very factual and all true.However, documentaries can also create a false sense of reality because they play with human emotion. Some of the facts and pictures can be biased to the specific topic or can be unclear at other times. According to Steyerl, portrayals of real events can sometimes be introduced in a way that creates a fictitious setting because of the emotional aspect involved in the documentary. Documentaries bring distant events close to us, and alienate what is closest to us. Documentaries create false intimacy and a false presence because they familiarize us with the world but do not give us the possibility of taking part in it. On the other hand, the fictitious portrayal found in documentaries of a specific event or time can also be an accurate portrayal of reality.
2. What is the significance of the authenticity and representation of the truth in the media that you consume on a daily basis? What is the role of a live broadcast?
In my opinion, the truth in the media is extremely important because it has a huge influence on everyone. For me, the media I consume influences my perspectives on certain things as well as the decisions I make on a daily basis. A lot of the time, some of the media (especially social media) can be heavily biased, so I tend to find sources that seem to be more informational and neutral. I think the role of the live broadcast is to deliver the message in that moment and make it authentic. I think also being able to hear a real person talking about this and connecting with them on an emotional level is powerful. But I also think, sometimes it may be scripted which again makes me concerned about how authentic the media we consume on a daily basis is.