Propaganda in the Americas: A Historical Evaluation

Join three distinguished historians giving a historical evaluation of the role played by propaganda in the modern history of the Americas. 

Steven Casey, Reader in International History, LSE, speaks on The Human Cost of War: US Propaganda and American Combat Casualties in the Twentieth Century. This explores how propaganda, both in word and image, has been an essential means to legitimize sacrifice occasioned by America's five foreign wars of the 20th century (World War I and II, Korea, Vietnam, and the Persian Gulf). 

Antoni Kapcia, Professor of Latin American History, Nottingham University, speaks on Propaganda or Consciousness-Raising: Public Discourse in Revolutionary Cuba. This explores the fundamental question of what is propaganda and how is it different from government educate the citizenry about important issues of the day through examination of Cuba in the wake of Fidel Castro's coming to power.

Benjamin Smith, Associate Professor of Latin American History, Warwick University, speaks on Revolutionary and Religious Propaganda in Twentieth Century Mexico. This contrasts the differing uses of propaganda by the state and the Catholic Church in relation to the defining event of Mexico's 20th-century history, the Revolution of 1911-1920.

As their talks demonstrate, no matter what kind of regime or institution is involved, propaganda has been a fundamental instrument of public policy and dialogue in the Americas over the course of the 20th century. 

Co-sponsored by the British Library Eccles Centre for American Studies and the UCL Institute of the Americas