Jeffrey Whyte, The Birth of Psychological War. Propaganda, Espionage, and Military Violence from WWII to the Vietnam War. Oxford University Press, 2023
Open access
Description
The Birth of Psychological War explores the history, politics, and geography of United States psychological warfare in the 20th century against the backdrop of the contemporary ‘post-truth era’. From its origins in the Second World War, to the United States’ counterinsurgency campaigns in Vietnam, Whyte traces how the theory and practice of psychological warfare transformed the relationship between the home front and theatres of war. Whyte interrogates the broader political mythologies that animate popular conceptions of psychological war, such as its claim to make war more humane and less violent.On the contrary, The Birth of Psychological War demonstrates the role of psychological warfare in expanding the scope and scale of military violence amidst ostensible efforts to ‘win hearts and minds’. While casting a critical eye on psychological warfare, Whyte establishes its continued significance for the contemporary student of international relations.
This book makes use of both governmentality as a framework for thinking about psychological war in terms of the circulation of information, and also confession as a way of thinking about how US psychological warfare has constantly attempted to ‘make speak’ and tie individuals to the kinds of truths they are led to formulate about themselves.
Table of Contents
Introduction
1:’A New Geography of Defence’
2:Truth, Territory, Terror
3:Covert Crusade
4:Psywar in Vietnam
Dr Jeffrey Whyte is a Lecturer in International Relations at Lancaster University. He holds a PhD in Geography from the University of British Columbia, and an MA in Communications from Simon Fraser University. His work explores the political history of psychological warfare in the United States.
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