Is This A Primary Or Secondary Source?

This is a secondary source. It is a secondhand source--the author is drawing on others for information rather than sharing their own experiences.

These materials were created during the fighting, so they are primary.

A book where the author provides firsthand accounts of their experiences, such as being drafted, flying to Vietnam, and fighting in battles, is considered a primary source. It offers direct insights into the author's personal involvement in the war, making it a primary source.

A primary source is a direct, firsthand account or evidence of an event, created by someone who experienced or witnessed it. In this case, a letter written by a soldier during World War II qualifies as a primary source because it provides a firsthand perspective. Secondary sources like biographies, documentaries, and textbooks interpret, analyze, or summarize primary sources, making them indirect accounts.

TV, radio, and films can be primary if they portray the actual event--not a reenactment. Since this documentary recorded the actual war, it is a primary source.

The article was written well after the war ended. It has a formal writing style so the author is probably not recounting their own experiences. It analyzes and interprets other sources (it has a bibliography) rather than shares the author's personal experiences. Sounds secondary.

A book that compiles letters, poems, and memoirs written by people who experienced the war would typically be considered a primary source. 

Primary sources are materials that provide direct or firsthand evidence of an event or time period and are created by individuals who were directly involved or witnessed the event. In this case, the letters, poems, and memoirs in the book were written by people who experienced the war, making them primary sources. The book itself, which compiles and presents these materials, can also be considered a secondary source when it provides analysis or interpretation of the primary sources.

Newspaper articles from the time period of an event are usually considered to be primary. They are original, raw materials created while the event was taking place.

This book is probably primary because it was written by someone who knew Westmoreland personally.