Summary: Weeks after S. Spencer Scott interviewed Lavinia Gelineau about the loss of her husband Chris, a young soldier who was killed in Iraq, Lavinia herself was murdered by her abusive father. A meditation on life during wartime.
Here is a debate and it is a subtle one. So here I go weighing in: I found the piece very disturbing. The production is on a professional level: the interview is very, very good and the producer writes well for himself and reads it well. I sympathize with him entirely, and feel that he does make an honest attempt to grapple with what has happened, which for him is very hard because the woman seems to have been a friend on top of everything. But there is so much we don't know. The situation is so unusual and shocking that so many questions are left behind. A single line announces that the woman we have been listening to (and directly emphasizing with) has been murdered by her father. Then she's gone. Say that again? Then it's tidily wrapped up into "the cost of war" leaving a whole universe of information submerged. What happened here was more complex than platitudes about war. This piece for me reflects the cost of the need to simplify, and even to shock and then dump out. It's a "driveway moment" alright. Without the drive. Or the way into what it could all mean.
***********
Update to the review, September 06: I see what my fellow EB member wrote about my "driveway moment" comment. I in fact agree with him exactly. It should NOT be reduced to a driveway moment. But the hurried ending that does not properly delve into what has gone on here but instead tries to wrap it all up boldly IS influenced by a medium that doesn't encourage ambiguity.
I played this piece for a group of students that were really puzzled and had nothing but questions that I couldn't answer - even after we went over all the facts and every word he said.
I admire what the producer did with this piece. After Lavinia's death, the story also became about him and trying to make sense of things. It's very somber - basically just his and Lavinia's voices - and you can hear their loss expressed in very different ways. I aired it on a Memorial Day show with a lighter, historical piece about war and it was a nice contrast.
A powerful, moving story - stranger than fiction but shockingly real. The simple structure - two parts separated by an emotionally charged short silence - works very well. The narration is sesitively written and delivered; the musical scoring just right. If a line or two near the end are a bit patently obvious to some, it can be forgiven by the youth of the producer. His voice seems to contain the unspoken thought, It could have been me.
I respectfully disagree with some of the comments made in another review by my EB colleague. And to reduce any discussion of this piece to it's "driveway moment" potential seems particularly banal. But don't take my word for it. Listen yourself - and let your listeners do the same.
I am Chris Gelineau's Mom, Vicky Chicoine. I had heard Lavi expressing these same feelings, as in the interview, many times. Lavi helped me so much with my grief overr Chris' death. I got and remained so close to her after he died. We had many talks in the late nights when we couldn't sleep, and shared many tears. Lavi was my daughter. She called me "Mom". I am so glad that this interview was made, so I could hear my daughter's voice again.
Well written and factual. THe storyline is a little hurried but the content is matter of fact and true as I know it. I think her interview should be redone in more detail with several more clips of Lavinia speaking out. A very special thanks to the producer who captured the pain of this tragedy. Lavinia was a close personal friend who we all miss terribly. She lives on in all of us and inspires me daily with her memories. I am a richer man today having known Lavinia Gelineau...she touched all those knew her. I believe she watches over all that loved her. MArk Miller
I think this is my favorite story of the month. The beginning is so touching and dramatic. Your voice is very clear and your elocution is beyond words. There is very nice imagery coupled with a musical ambiance. Simply put--Bravo. This piece really brought home the impact of war on our society. It makes you think critically about the implications if you’ve never experienced them.
It does truly belong in a Shakespearian tragedy as you put, because like so many of his plays, it demonstrates the virtues of human life in a surreal way. In this case we deal with pain and suffering due to war. The outro was artistic and profound.
This piece is very,very solemn and realistic. Yet its definetly something that young people need to hear to have a real taste of how someone who's lost a loved one in war can be affected. This piece is so intense that it should have a warning for the audience, because it's just that real. What really has the most powerful affect on this are the interviews with Lavinia. For instance such quotes like her hearing "I'm sorry to inform you" and then not being able to hear anything else, very powerful. She gives the piece all the exact detail that it needs. You can make a visualization for almost every scene they talk about. The music does add to the tone of the piece, however it really adds to the solemness. The author really does a good job of explaining the story, especially towards the ending where he says, "it's almost like a story that should have been written by shakespeare." I really felt alot of emotion while listening to this piece, at no point was my attention lost. This story is so strong that I dont think I'll ever forget it.
I chose this piece to review before it was reviewed by another EB member. Let me see if I can put this question to the producer and the community. Our stations audiences are adults. PRX does a great job in providing a forum for youth producers to exhibit their work. By what standards should stations make choices about work produced by people 10 years younger than the bottom end of our demo? What is it that stations are looking for from young professionals?
This is wonderful produced piece. The music accentuates the story. And the first half is well written and documented. Unfortunately, the second half the segment falls short on story telling and objectivity.
Sad stories of our war dead are common in all media today, but this piece finds a truly horrific story of two lives ended by the most vexing emotion of humanity...hate..be it war or family violence. The irony of the combination to be examined in this piece is overwhelming. What a great story to found.
Now telling it is difficult. The first half of the piece is well done. The story telling of the husband's death in war is, while sadly is nothing we haven't heard before, told with dignity and objectivity.
Now here is where it falls short. First, the violent father element comes way out of left field midway through the segment. We've gotten to know the wife for about three and a half minutes with no background being offered. So when we get to her violent father who comes from overseas, we're hit out of left field with this information causing a bit of confusion that deflect listener interest.
Public Radio is emotional and you can't get more emotional than this story. But public radio isn't supposed to be preachy. By the end of this piece the writing falls down to youthful complaining and angst about the injustice of the war. To be sure, I don't personally disagree, but as a radio professional, my job is to put work on the air that expands my listener's thinking, as this story does. But my job is also to prevent work from getting on the air that points my listeners down a path that limits their thinking about this. At the end of this piece, that happens.
So, I am left with thinking about this: With the determined oversight of a more experienced producer, I think this piece could be driveway moment. The producer has all the required skills to grab the listener and a bit of editing and robust discussion could have made this piece a hallmark of public radio programming for more than just the time it was on the air. I encourage the producer to rework this piece because the story is just too good.
Ultimately, I find myself wondering if I want this kind of story from a younger professional? If this story came up in my newsroom I would have certainly assigned it to my most senior reporter. I have listened to several youth producer pieces and I find the pieces I find most compelling is when a young professional tells me how his compatriots are thinking and dealing with life. So I think the best thing this piece has done for me is to focus my thinking about what I am looking for in youth produced pieces and how I could incorporate them into our air.
There is a simplicity to the production of this piece that stopped me in my tracks. I knew what was going to happen based on the info given in the show page (which sometimes, I'm thinking, is not a great idea to give it all away). The widow's voice is so real and raw - that alone would have made the point about the cost of war. But following the awful and almost unbelievable event of the widow's death, this young producer, seeking sense of the wrongs in life, draws some painful parallels that leave the listener thougthful and disturbed. It is the unencumbered youthfulness of his sight that underscores the cruelness that is strewn along our way. Eloquent work.
Significant to air during war, after war, before war.
Comments for The Cost of War
Produced by S. Spencer Scott
Other pieces by Blunt Youth Radio Project
Rating Summary
9 comments
Marjorie Van Halteren
Posted on June 01, 2006 at 12:39 AM | Permalink
Review of The Cost of War
Here is a debate and it is a subtle one. So here I go weighing in: I found the piece very disturbing. The production is on a professional level: the interview is very, very good and the producer writes well for himself and reads it well. I sympathize with him entirely, and feel that he does make an honest attempt to grapple with what has happened, which for him is very hard because the woman seems to have been a friend on top of everything. But there is so much we don't know. The situation is so unusual and shocking that so many questions are left behind. A single line announces that the woman we have been listening to (and directly emphasizing with) has been murdered by her father. Then she's gone. Say that again? Then it's tidily wrapped up into "the cost of war" leaving a whole universe of information submerged. What happened here was more complex than platitudes about war. This piece for me reflects the cost of the need to simplify, and even to shock and then dump out. It's a "driveway moment" alright. Without the drive. Or the way into what it could all mean.
***********
Update to the review, September 06: I see what my fellow EB member wrote about my "driveway moment" comment. I in fact agree with him exactly. It should NOT be reduced to a driveway moment. But the hurried ending that does not properly delve into what has gone on here but instead tries to wrap it all up boldly IS influenced by a medium that doesn't encourage ambiguity.
I played this piece for a group of students that were really puzzled and had nothing but questions that I couldn't answer - even after we went over all the facts and every word he said.
Ahndi Fridell
Posted on May 31, 2006 at 04:29 PM | Permalink
Review of The Cost of War
I admire what the producer did with this piece. After Lavinia's death, the story also became about him and trying to make sense of things. It's very somber - basically just his and Lavinia's voices - and you can hear their loss expressed in very different ways. I aired it on a Memorial Day show with a lighter, historical piece about war and it was a nice contrast.
David Swatling
Posted on May 16, 2006 at 10:07 PM | Permalink
Review of The Cost of War
A powerful, moving story - stranger than fiction but shockingly real. The simple structure - two parts separated by an emotionally charged short silence - works very well. The narration is sesitively written and delivered; the musical scoring just right. If a line or two near the end are a bit patently obvious to some, it can be forgiven by the youth of the producer. His voice seems to contain the unspoken thought, It could have been me.
I respectfully disagree with some of the comments made in another review by my EB colleague. And to reduce any discussion of this piece to it's "driveway moment" potential seems particularly banal. But don't take my word for it. Listen yourself - and let your listeners do the same.
vicky chicoine
Posted on March 18, 2006 at 11:50 AM | Permalink
Review of The Cost of War
I am Chris Gelineau's Mom, Vicky Chicoine. I had heard Lavi expressing these same feelings, as in the interview, many times. Lavi helped me so much with my grief overr Chris' death. I got and remained so close to her after he died. We had many talks in the late nights when we couldn't sleep, and shared many tears. Lavi was my daughter. She called me "Mom". I am so glad that this interview was made, so I could hear my daughter's voice again.
Mark Miller
Posted on July 30, 2005 at 03:31 AM | Permalink
Review of The Cost of War
Well written and factual. THe storyline is a little hurried but the content is matter of fact and true as I know it. I think her interview should be redone in more detail with several more clips of Lavinia speaking out. A very special thanks to the producer who captured the pain of this tragedy. Lavinia was a close personal friend who we all miss terribly. She lives on in all of us and inspires me daily with her memories. I am a richer man today having known Lavinia Gelineau...she touched all those knew her. I believe she watches over all that loved her. MArk Miller
Andre Rosario
Posted on July 27, 2005 at 12:10 PM | Permalink
Review of The Cost of War
I think this is my favorite story of the month. The beginning is so touching and dramatic. Your voice is very clear and your elocution is beyond words. There is very nice imagery coupled with a musical ambiance. Simply put--Bravo. This piece really brought home the impact of war on our society. It makes you think critically about the implications if you’ve never experienced them.
It does truly belong in a Shakespearian tragedy as you put, because like so many of his plays, it demonstrates the virtues of human life in a surreal way. In this case we deal with pain and suffering due to war. The outro was artistic and profound.
Excellent job.
sasha smith
Posted on July 26, 2005 at 11:20 AM | Permalink
Review of The Cost of War
This piece is very,very solemn and realistic. Yet its definetly something that young people need to hear to have a real taste of how someone who's lost a loved one in war can be affected. This piece is so intense that it should have a warning for the audience, because it's just that real. What really has the most powerful affect on this are the interviews with Lavinia. For instance such quotes like her hearing "I'm sorry to inform you" and then not being able to hear anything else, very powerful. She gives the piece all the exact detail that it needs. You can make a visualization for almost every scene they talk about. The music does add to the tone of the piece, however it really adds to the solemness. The author really does a good job of explaining the story, especially towards the ending where he says, "it's almost like a story that should have been written by shakespeare." I really felt alot of emotion while listening to this piece, at no point was my attention lost. This story is so strong that I dont think I'll ever forget it.
Steve Yasko
Posted on July 25, 2005 at 04:16 AM | Permalink
Should Youth Pieces Be Held to the Same Standards as Non-Youth Work?
This is wonderful produced piece. The music accentuates the story. And the first half is well written and documented. Unfortunately, the second half the segment falls short on story telling and objectivity.
Sad stories of our war dead are common in all media today, but this piece finds a truly horrific story of two lives ended by the most vexing emotion of humanity...hate..be it war or family violence. The irony of the combination to be examined in this piece is overwhelming. What a great story to found.
Now telling it is difficult. The first half of the piece is well done. The story telling of the husband's death in war is, while sadly is nothing we haven't heard before, told with dignity and objectivity.
Now here is where it falls short. First, the violent father element comes way out of left field midway through the segment. We've gotten to know the wife for about three and a half minutes with no background being offered. So when we get to her violent father who comes from overseas, we're hit out of left field with this information causing a bit of confusion that deflect listener interest.
Public Radio is emotional and you can't get more emotional than this story. But public radio isn't supposed to be preachy. By the end of this piece the writing falls down to youthful complaining and angst about the injustice of the war. To be sure, I don't personally disagree, but as a radio professional, my job is to put work on the air that expands my listener's thinking, as this story does. But my job is also to prevent work from getting on the air that points my listeners down a path that limits their thinking about this. At the end of this piece, that happens.
So, I am left with thinking about this: With the determined oversight of a more experienced producer, I think this piece could be driveway moment. The producer has all the required skills to grab the listener and a bit of editing and robust discussion could have made this piece a hallmark of public radio programming for more than just the time it was on the air. I encourage the producer to rework this piece because the story is just too good.
Ultimately, I find myself wondering if I want this kind of story from a younger professional? If this story came up in my newsroom I would have certainly assigned it to my most senior reporter. I have listened to several youth producer pieces and I find the pieces I find most compelling is when a young professional tells me how his compatriots are thinking and dealing with life. So I think the best thing this piece has done for me is to focus my thinking about what I am looking for in youth produced pieces and how I could incorporate them into our air.
[redacted]
Posted on July 24, 2005 at 07:19 AM | Permalink
Review of The Cost of War
There is a simplicity to the production of this piece that stopped me in my tracks. I knew what was going to happen based on the info given in the show page (which sometimes, I'm thinking, is not a great idea to give it all away). The widow's voice is so real and raw - that alone would have made the point about the cost of war. But following the awful and almost unbelievable event of the widow's death, this young producer, seeking sense of the wrongs in life, draws some painful parallels that leave the listener thougthful and disturbed. It is the unencumbered youthfulness of his sight that underscores the cruelness that is strewn along our way. Eloquent work.
Significant to air during war, after war, before war.
notes to producer