| On March 23, 1983, President Ronald Reagan proposed the Strategic Defense Initiative and called for a national effort "which holds the promise of changing the course of human history." The journey to create a national missile defense ultimately involved three U.S. administrations, three Soviet premiers, tens of billions of dollars and rubles, millions of hours of research and study, thousands of scientists, engineers and military planners, and the real potential of accelerating the arms race between the superpowers.;An unreported aspect of this story lies in the public relations efforts to tell the world exactly what Ronald Reagan proposed that spring evening in Washington. It is this study's central contention that almost immediately after the announcement the initial battle for public support and understanding had already been fought, and perhaps irretrievably lost. By analyzing the PR campaigns initiated by both supporters and opponents of the SDI program and the effectiveness of their efforts, this work seeks to examine the role public relations played in "selling" what would become the largest research and development undertaking in American history.;The SDI debate was similar to the great anti-ballistic-missile discussions that occupied Americans in the late 1960s. However, this confrontation was different in that there was no weapon-deployment program to advance or criticize. This lack of a definite and detailed subject to analyze often freed opponents and supporters from providing the hard evidence necessary to advance their arguments. The dissertation draws upon official government documents as well as interviews with participants on both sides of the issue and how effectively they crafted their respective messages.;The American public appears no closer to understanding or appreciating such a system than it was over the course of the original Reagan proposal. Current world events and increased concerns about nuclear proliferation have served to put the notion of a defensive system back on the national agenda. How to nurture or stifle that hope may be determined best by looking back on the public relations efforts to launch and sustain the strategic defense initiative during its ten year existence. |
