Courses

Cold War “soft power” ideological campaigns for the “hearts and minds of men” abutted “hot war” confrontations between 1945 and 1991 and beyond. This seminar examines the history of government and private sector mechanisms used to export national ideals and ideas about America in order to enact foreign policy agendas in contested regions. The class will open with an examination of power - hard and soft - propaganda, "truth," and "informational" practices - and then continue to explore cultural diplomacy. Primary sources including radio broadcasts, music, agriculture, and architecture are examined in the context of secondary readings about the Cold War. Because New York City became postwar “cultural capital of the world,” student trips include the Rockefeller Archives Center, the Museum of Radio and Television, Columbia University’s Avery Architectural and Fine Arts archives, and the Oral History Research Center, Rare Book and Manuscript Library.   This course has three purposes: (i) to examine the role of culture as a reflection and enactment of Cold War politics; (ii) to provide an understanding of cultural forces in building ideas in foreign markets; (iii) to reframe the understanding of “soft” and “hard” power as a strategy of Cold War battles.