AllMovie

War is a Racket was described as "a newsreel complication in story form" -- or what would nowadays be designated a "docudrama." Troubled by headlines of the crises in Europe and Asia, a crusading newspaper editor sends a roving reporter out to ask the public if war is merely a "racket," created to line the pockets of bankers, industrialists and munitions manufacturers. The reporter asks quite a few people in high places, as well as a humble "Gold Star" mother and a former soldier. As each interviewee relates his or her answer, the film dissolves to newsreel footage of WW I, the Roaring Twenties, the Wall Street Crash, etc. The answer to the editor's question is twofold: Yes, war is a racket, but the populace must be properly prepared for war nonetheless.