With the rise of drones and computer-controlled weapons, the line between war and video games continues to blur. In this book, the authors trace how the realities of war are deeply inflected by their representation in popular entertainment. War games and other media, in turn, feature an increasing number of weapons, tactics, and threat scenarios from the War on Terror. While past analyses have emphasized top-down circulation of pro-military ideologies through government public relations efforts and a cooperative media industry, The Military-Entertainment Complex argues for a nonlinear relationship, defined largely by market and institutional pressures. Tim Lenoir and Luke Caldwell explore the history of the early days of the video game industry, when personnel and expertise flowed from military contractors to game companies; to a middle period when the military drew on the booming game industry to train troops; to a present in which media corporations and the military influence one another cyclically to predict the future of warfare. In addition to obvious military-entertainment titles like America's Army, Lenoir and Caldwell investigate the rise of best-selling franchise games such as Call of Duty, Battlefield, Medal of Honor, and Ghost Recon. The narratives and aesthetics of these video games permeate other media, including films and television programs. This commodification and marketing of the future of combat has shaped the public's imagination of war in the post-9/11 era and naturalized the U.S. Pentagon's vision of a new way of war.

Enter the world of Luke Caldwell, founder of the Timber and Love design and build firm and HGTV star of Boise Boys and Outgrown, as he shares his intentional design philosophy for creating timeless and organic home designs in this aspirational and accessible book. If you’ve seen the popular HGTV shows Boise Boys and Outgrown, you’ll know Luke Caldwell’s passion for natural materials and comfortable spaces that are warm, inviting, livable, and beautiful at the same time. Now with Americana Soul, you can make those designs work for you. Organized by design style—Timber and Love, Natural and Organic, and Classic and Cozy—Luke’s book is filled with photography that showcases the bones and flow of the spaces as well as the details that make them unique. Americana Soul showcases Luke’s passion for design including curated personal collections and vintage finds, natural stone walls and fireplaces, and exposed wood beams, in a way that will inspire you to create your own.