nuclear-propaganda
Government and industry campaigns promoted nuclear energy as a beneficial and safe technology to the American public, using media like comic books and films.
2 chapters across 1 book
War Stars: The Superweapon and the American Imagination (1988)H. Bruce Franklin
This chapter examines the complex cultural and psychological responses to nuclear war in mid-20th century America, focusing first on Judith Merril's literary exploration of maternal denial and domestic survival in the face of atomic devastation. It then analyzes the paradoxical public complacency and government propaganda during the early Cold War, highlighting the rise of authoritarian civil-defense structures, the manipulation of nuclear fear through myths like the bomber gap, and the suppression of dissenting cultural voices amid anti-Communist repression.
This chapter compiles extensive notes, references, and bibliographies that underpin the analysis of nuclear culture, propaganda, and the militarization of space during the Cold War, with a particular focus on the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI). It highlights the interplay between media, government campaigns, science fiction, and political rhetoric in shaping public and expert perceptions of nuclear weapons and space warfare. Additionally, it provides a comprehensive historical literary survey of speculative and war-related fiction that reflects and critiques the cultural imagination surrounding superweapons and apocalyptic scenarios.