U.S. Psychological Warfare And Overseas Book Program In Early Cold War (1945-1961)

The traditional research on cold war mostly focused on the fields of political opposition and arms race. However, with the in-depth study of the Cold War, the most covert and concealed aspect of the cold war was gradually exposed, which provided a new perspective for the world to re-examine the cold war. Fundamentally, the conflicts of culture and ideology formed the basis of cold war. This was a war which depended on public opinion rather than bloody battle.In the early years of the cold war, the socialist camp headed by the Soviet Union continued to grow, and the international communist activities had become increasingly frequent, so the communist ideology also spread rapidly, which not only greatly challenged the western world, but also affected public opinions in other parts of the world. In order to reverse the adverse situation, United States government quickly launched a global psychological warfare for the purpose of "weakening the communist influence and strengthening the pro-western sentiment", which attacked the Soviet Union and the communism, meanwhile peddled American thoughts, culture and values, so as to establish American preponderance in the world opinion. Therefore, the fields of American national security and diplomacy were filled with psychological operations. In fact, the psychological warfare was no longer the auxiliary means of political, economic and military policies, but the core content of cold war, and it had known as "the fourth weapon" of cold war.In this huge psychological warfare, VOA, educational and cultural exchanges, the dissemination of publications and prints, the output of scientific and technological achievements, the establishment of overseas libraries and cultural centers, academic research and institutions, tourism, exhibitions and so on, had become cold war propaganda vehicles for U.S. government. As an important carrier of ideology and culture, the book had always been regarded as an important means to realize the overseas objectives. To this end, United States drew up a vast overseas book program, and developed a "pro-American and anti-Communist" book propaganda campaign for U.S. allies, Soviet bloc and third world. Taking American overseas book program as its focus, this paper elaborates U.S. global book propaganda activities during the early period of cold war, and thoroughly discusses the books burdened with specially political missions how to promote realization of American psychological strategy and national objectives.The paper is divided into three parts:the preface, text and conclusion. Preface explains the background of the subject, basic content, research significance, related concepts and existing literature, and puts forward the research space in the future. The text consists of four chapters, mainly discussing American psychological warfare and overseas book program during the early cold war.Chapter one shows the overall background of cold war for American overseas book program, and narrates mainly the formation and development of psychological strategy of United States in the first phase of cold war. The Truman administration has laid the foundation of psychological strategy and operations during the cold war. In 1947, the National Security Council was established, soon psychological warfare was included in the NSC’s agenda. In 1951, President Truman created the Psychological Strategy Board, as an agency under NSC. PSB was responsible for policy planning, formulation and implementation of psychological strategy and operations. After Eisenhower came to power, he further strengthened the system of psychological warfare. He established Operations Coordinating Board in place of PSB for integrating inter-agency activities, and built American greatest cold war propaganda machine-U.S. Information Agency. More importantly, Eisenhower administration filtered psychological operations and propaganda into all aspects of national security and foreign policy, and "cold war consensus’" in United States came into being, which opened a total cold war.Based on three aspects of legislation, organization system, evaluation and investigation mechanism, chapter two discusses support factors of overseas book program in early cold war. In legislation, U.S. Information and Educational Exchange Act, Mutual Security Act, International Cultural Exchange and Trade Fair Participation Act, and President’s Emergency Fund for International Affairs provided valid basis for financial appropriation of psychological operations and overseas book program. In the aspect of organization system, the close cooperation between top-down government decision-making, coordinating, executive bodies and plenty of non-governmental organizations promoted the development of overseas book program. Survey and estimation were requisite for overseas book program would being targeted and effective.Chapter three systematically describes American government’s overseas book activities for the purpose of cold war propaganda. It contains regular book program and special book program. The program was chiefly responsible by the State and USIA, and actively assisted by other related official agencies. Book translation program, low-priced book program, Information Centers program, Informational Media Guaranty program were carried out around the world, disseminating widely the books in the American national interest. In addition, U.S. used special themes, target groups, fields, events to conduct pertinent book propaganda activities, such as textbook program, ideological book program, and overseas Chinese book program. The special book program made up for weaknesses of regular book program from different angles, enabling American overseas book program to be more comprehensive and perfect.The fourth chapter expounded NGO and private groups fully participating in American overseas book program from the viewpoint of cooperation between government and private sector. Publishing companies, foundations, academic institutions, public organizations, social associations and individuals formed a powerful force, taking part in the book propaganda campaign abroad. Non-governmental factor could on the one hand cover up the official propaganda, and be engaged in inconvenient activities, and spread American books to the areas where government ability was difficult to penetrate; on the other hand open up a wide market abroad for American books, and create a large number of commercial contacts and channels to promote the sustainable development of American overseas book program. U.S. NGO and individuals as a covert propaganda tool involved in the psychological warfare widely, which was not only a reflection of total cold war, but also an important symbol of American cold war consensus.The conclusion combs through the whole thread of this dissertation, and summarizes the characteristics of American overseas book program. It also evaluates the psychological significance of books as a kind of cold war propaganda weapon. Overseas book program was a strategic tool in the long run, and its effects depended on long-term and steady developments. Its contribution to the goals of psychological warfare was slow, but the influence has been handed down from generation to generation.Through the interpretation of U.S. psychological warfare and overseas book program, this paper tries to restore the truth that America government took psychological operations into national security and diplomatic strategy, and conducted propaganda campaign and struggle for the world people’s hearts and minds by books. Thereby it reveals American general objectives of spreading western values and promoting the capitalist way and attacking the Soviet Union and communism, meanwhile shows the sinister motives of United States that subtly influenced people’s thoughts and behaviors in order to make public opinion develop in a direction favorable to the United States.