During the 1970s, Congressional investigations into government intelligence actions revealed a number of covert (or hidden) operations against foreign powers which flirted with Communism.
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Tag Archives: cold war
Widening the War: The Gulf of Tonkin Incident
While American troops had been in South Vietnam providing training and security during the early 1960s, it was the 1964 attack by North Vietnam on the USS Maddox which triggered a wider US military involvement.
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Atomic Anxiety
With the dawn of nuclear war after the American bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the Soviet acquisition of an atomic bomb in the late 1940s, civil defense–programs of safety education–became prominent in American schools.
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The Cold War and the World
Following World War II, geopolitical dominance was split between the United States and its allies and the Soviet Union (and its allies)
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Nehru on Non-Alignment
Economic Development and Nonalignment (1956)
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What About Juvenile Delinquency?
An increase in crime committed by teenagers during the late 1940s and into the 1950s spawned a number of educational resources aimed at young people (and their parents).
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Comic Books, Kids, and Crime
Excerpts from a 1955 Senate report on Comic Books and Juvenile Delinquency.
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Ideology and Propaganda: Make Mine Freedom
Throughout the Cold War, Harding College (now University) produced a number of films which promoted “American” values in the face of perceived pressure from “un-American” ideologies. This short animated film, “Make Mine Freedom” is an early example of these films. As you watch it, think about the goals the filmmakers had in creating this cartoon and who the cartoon’s audience might have been.
Source: The Prelinger Collection (direct link to video)
Questions to consider:
- The film makes reference to “isms”–given the year of production, to what “isms” might the filmmakers have been referring?
- What do the filmmakers promote as an alternative to ‘isms”?
- What are the specific dangers of these “isms”?
- What makes the American way better than the foreign “isms,” according to the filmmakers?
How Much Affection? Youth, Sex, and Social Norms in Cold War America
During the 1950s, some American thinkers expressed concern that deviation from accepted behavior, would contribute to a weakening of American society. This educational film from 1958 addresses some of the perceived consequences of premarital sex. While premarital sex was certainly not invented in the 1950s, concerns about “proper” behavior were enhanced by the tensions of the Cold War.