What’s on television

Today you will have the opportunity to collaborate with a team to create your

own television show covering the events of WWI

World War I Background

• WWI began in Europe in 1914 and lasted 4 years. It was one of the biggest wars in history.

• World War I started because nations in Eurpe competed for power. They had secret agreements. These agreements meant that if one of them got in war, they all would help in the fight.

The Alliance System

Central Powers• Germany• Austria-Hungary• Italy

(Triple Alliance)

Allied Powers• Britain• France• Russia

(Triple Entente)

Fighting the War

• New weapons made fighting in WWI brutal and bloody.

• For the first time, airplanes were used in battle. Poison gas and powerful machine guns were used on the ground.

• At sea, submarines were used to sink ships. • In all, 13 million people died.

America Enters the War

• At first, the U.S. stayed neutral and out of the fighting. In time, however, it was pulled into the war.

• Why?– Many Americans felt close to the British– In 1915, Germany sank British liner Lusitania, which had

1200 people on board including 128 Americans.– In 1917 Germany announced unrestricted submarine

warfare and carried it out by sinking 5 U.S. ships– In 1917, the English discovered a message from Alfred

Zimmerman stating if war broke out between the Central Powers and the U.S., Mexico should attack the U.S.

Propaganda

• President Wilson told Americans that by entering the war, they could “make the world safe for democracy.”

• Many Americans were still not ready to enter war

• So, the U.S. government used propaganda to help make fighting the war a more popular idea.

Propaganda

What’s on t.v?

• Today you will have the opportunity to create a short drama, comedy, commercial, news cast, infomercial, or some type of t.v. advertisement

Presentation

Your team presentation should detail any FOUR of the following:

• Causes of U.S. entry into WWI• Significance of Zimmerman note• Efforts made by women to help• U.S. policy to remain neutral• Why WWI happened• Alliance System• Where WWI took place• Who won the war