Figure 1.2 Comic title, "Is this tomorrow: America under communism!"
The Propagandists
The international struggle for power between the United States and the Soviet Union meant that propaganda operations also advanced globally. In this way, almost "every aspect of human activity" was propagandized in every country around the world, including in America.9 Some aspects of propaganda remained the same, although not for too long. Over the course of the Cold War, beginning in 1945, propaganda often appeared in forms seen in previous wars such as anti-Communist and anti-Soviet posters, films, books, and comics (Figure 1.2) or recruitment efforts during the Korean and Vietnam Wars (Figure 1.3). The rise of McCarthyism in the government after Senator Joseph McCarthy (R., Wis) declared that Communists had "infiltrated" the Department of State, legitimized the Red Scare and the systemic hunt for Communists that followed. By simply denouncing celebrities, intellectuals, and anyone who disagreed with him as a Communist, McCarthy successfully destroyed reputations and careers and caused thousands of federal employees to be fired from their jobs. This fanned the Red Scare hysteria in the American public, especially after the Soviet Union started nuclear testing and war broke out in Korea and Vietnam.10 11
However, the Cold War was complex; the US was fighting not only a military and political war but also a technological, economic, ideological, religious, and cultural war. Thus, the American government not only supported the anti-Soviet crusade by military means but there was also a significant uptick in government support of the arts to improve perception of American culture abroad. For instance, the State Department began several cultural initiatives, such as the Advancing American Art exhibit starting in 1946. Organized by J. LeRoy Davidson and Richard Heindel, the Department purchased over 70 paintings with over 30 more provided by the American Federation of Arts.12 13The State Department also funded the American National Balle Theatre, renamed American Ballet Theatre (ABT) with encouragement from President Dwight D. Eisenhower. Determined to outflank the "Communists' prime cultural export," the State Department and other organizations (such as the Central Intelligence Agency) managed to send the ABT behind the Iron Curtain (Figure 1.4) and win over Soviet audiences.14 15 16 Not surprisingly then, the Olympic Games became a battleground not only for sportsmanship but political ideology as well.17 Internationally, the United States launched several propaganda campaigns aimed at the communist forces in Vietnam and Korea, hoping to combat anti-American propaganda.
Figure 1.3 "Officers and Airmen work together on the greatest team! U.S. Air Force"
Figure 1.4 "ABT breaks thorugh the Iron Curtain"
Media Utilization Techniques
On the home front, much like during World War 2, successful Cold War propaganda efforts targeted and amplified fears that the "American Way of Life" was at stake. Communism was portrayed as something hidden and eating away at American society and moral standing.18 What made this so impactful was driving home the fear it could be anywhere and that the Communist could be anyone, like wolves in sheep's clothing. This prompted the government and corporations alike to publish guides and pamphlets on how to spot a Communist and what to do once they were spotted (inform the police), such as one seen in Figure 1.5 published by the Timken Roller Bearing Company in the 1950s. The emergence of celebrity evangelical Billy Graham firmly planted the Communism problem into the field of religion. Starting his own ministry in 1947, Graham was already influential enough to begin his own radio broadcast in over 150 stations and have a personal audience with President Truman by 1950.19 20 He also toured all across America and eventually around the globe in "crusades," preaching the Gospel and warning people of the dangers of things such as not converting to Christianity and Communism. As it so happened, Graham often described Communism as the evil opposite of Christianity and urged his audiences to remain alert and reject "Satan's religion."21 22
Figure 1.5 "How and what to tell a Communist"
Figure 1.6 "Perverts called government peril"
At the same time, McCarthy also began a crusade against homosexuality within the federal government, charging "flagrant" homosexuals as security risks.23As a result, the Department of State started investigating charges of homosexuality. Department employees then began anonymously accusing colleagues of being queer, resulting in the creation of the M Unit by the Office of Security to look into "cases of suspected homosexuals." At the height of McCarthyism, a "purge" of gays and lesbians from the Department occurred, causing homosexuality and Communism to be quickly conflated (Figure 1.6).24McCarthy's case was also aided by religion as in 1946, the first Revised Standard Version (RSV) Bibles were being published and had accidentally mistranslated several verses to condemn homosexuality. As it so happened, the RSV team had signed a contract stating they would not make any changes to the RSV for the next ten years, solidifying the public's beliefs on the connection between Christianity, Communism, and homosexuality.25 Even cases of "immorality," "moral turpitude," and "weakness of character" were investigated, bringing about another round of baseless accusations within the State Department. The Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Security and Consular Affairs (SCA) also asserted that every single case of "single motherhood or other moral infractions" should be investigated and "judged on its own merits."26
During the Vietnam War, there was a tremendous amount of black and gray propaganda from and within the government, such as outright fabricated reports used to justify escalation. In fact, the "unprovoked attack" from North Vietnamese forces that prompted the passing of the Tonkin Gulf Resolution and the initiation of a three-year bombing campaign turned out to be false; later investigations proved that the entire incident had been staged. To justify using more military force (and hoping to be reelected), President Lyndon B. Johnson would deliberately alter body count numbers or simply lied about troop information.27The government was also desperate for victory and, rather than admit defeat, repeated the message that the war was going well. Advisors were given carefully "screened" briefings of the war progress, and officials anxious to see pacification working reported that it was. Thus, the war was also prolonged for years. Even after President Richard Nixon took office, the press and public hardly received a straightforward explanation of the nature and extent of the operations in Cambodia.28In reality, the Americans were slowly but surely losing; pacification was going so badly that the pro-American president of South Vietnam could only win thanks to the CIA rigging the election.29
Figure 1.7 "Rocky IV movie poster"
Figure 1.8 "Moscow Olympics 1980"
To reinforce patriotism and "appropriate virtues" at home, the Truman and Eisenhower Administrations gave the press the texts to be published, controlled newspaper content, and favored journalists as a form of grey propaganda.30 The American film industry was also solicited by the government to produce films "that pointed out the dangers of communism," such as the early films The Iron Curtain and Jim McLain (purposely similar to McCarthy) in the 1940s and '50s.31 In 1957, the country was shocked to hear about the launch of Sputnik I by the Soviets and ignited fears that the US was falling behind the USSR technologically. Essentially, this worsened anti-Soviet hysteria now that the Soviets could launch intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) reaching the United States.32 This led to the creation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in 1958 by President Eisenhower. Then in 1961, President John F. Kennedy boldly declared that America would land a man on the moon before the decade was up, ushering the Apollo Project (and increasing NASA's budget by almost 500% by 1964). Eventually, the US succeeded in sending three men to the moon in 1969 before the Soviet Union.33 Although it was a huge technological feat, the moon landing was significant in that it provided the American public a much-needed morale boost amidst a period of global and civil unrest and turmoil.34
Although anti-Soviet sentiment waned in the '70s, it was revived during the '80s following the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. This is reflected in films such as Rocky IV, which follows a patriotic American boxer who defeats a violent, ignoble Soviet boxer in Russia and wins over the audience in his opponent's own country (Figure 1.7). The United States also ended up boycotting the 1980 Moscow Games as a response to the Soviet "intervention" (Figure 1.8) and threatened to tax and cut off federal support from the United States Olympic Committee (USOC). Combined with the crisis of American hostages in Tehran, President Jimmy Carter needed to react. Despite being a relatively weak and ineffective move, it was "attractively available and relatively inexpensive in political as well as economic terms."35 Abroad, Voice of America (VOA) was also used as a means to shape "positive perceptions of the United States and its allies and to manipulate attitudes toward democracy, capitalism, and freedom."36 Believing the US response to Soviet propaganda was "inadequate," VOA was voted in 1948 to be made a permanent part of the State Department's information activities.44 This was especially useful when broadcasting behind the Iron Curtain, much to the displeasure of communist officials.37
Figure 1.9 "Find yourself in the Air Force"
Figure 1.10 "In 1916, the Navy only wanted men. Today we want people who want to succeed"
Figure 1.11 "If Russia should win"
Figure 1.12 "The Red Iceberg"
Target Audience
After World War 2, the military began openly recruiting both men and women into its various branches, although women were still barred from combat roles until the 21st century. There were more recruitment ads and posters aimed at women, and many emphasized the qualities of people wanted by the military, as seen in Figure 1.10, that did not prefer one gender over the other. They did however often target the poor and uneducated youth such as during the Vietnam War, certifying the military would not see a shortage of manpower.38 That is not to say gendered propaganda did not exist; plenty often portrayed beautiful women as victims of Communism (Figure 1.11) or used sex appeal to catch audiences' attention, such as in advertisements related to the War. Children were also clearly warned of the dangers of Communism with comics and books on the issue, such as the comic in Figure 1.12. In fact, thousands of copies of The Red Iceberg were distributed in Catholic schools during the Cold War.39
In Vietnam, the US government engaged in what is called "psychological operations" and assigned the Joint U.S. Public Affairs Office (JUSPAO) the task of winning over the "hearts and minds" of the South Vietnamese people and increase support for a pro-democratic South Vietnam.40 Also known as the "pacification" plan, the "hearts and minds" strategy was executed by separating civilians from guerrillas, providing "security from VC [Viet Cong] attacks," and improving quality of life via "social, economic, and political reforms."41 The JUSPAO also targeted North Vietnam masses and VC soldiers in an attempt to "undermine and eventually abolish" support for a communist government. Known as Chieu Hoi ("open arms"), those from the VC who surrendered were "guaranteed protection, medication, and rehabilitation with new jobs in the south," propagated via broadcasts and leaflets.42
Figure 1.13 "Now cease reckless wars!"
Figure 1.14 "Communists force you into a third winter of war!"
Counterpropaganda
In Propaganda & Persuasion, Garth Jowett asserts that the Korean War must be seen as an "integral part of the Cold War." The intensity of the propaganda battles during the War essentially forced the US government "to reexamine its own propaganda techniques and activities and did much to strengthen the role of the [U.S. Information Agency] and other agencies charged with shaping America’s image at home and abroad."43 It was a disturbing shock to be charged as the "bad guy" and have that be widely known. Many posters circulated in North Korea portrayed Northern soldiers as heroes defending their country from nuclear devastation (Figure 1.13) and imperialist Western soldiers, depicted as barbarians killing, torturing, and burning North Korean civilians. Leaflets from North Korea attempted to discourage South Korean troops by questioning why they bothered to protect a doomed society that couldn't even take care of its own people. Communists also accused the United Nations of biological warfare and causing epidemics that had been wreaking havoc on the population, even successfully extracting false statements from captured pilots.44 To counter anti-Democratic propaganda, the American and South Korean governments with the UN scattered billions of propaganda leaflets called ppira over the Korean Peninsula. Many blamed the Communists for the war, such as the one in Figure 1.14. Hoping to weaken North Korean resistance and strengthen the morale of South Korean troops, other means of psychological warfare such as loudspeakers and radio operations were implemented as well.45
