Psychological War in Vietnam: Governmentality at The United States Information Agency

Whyte, Jeffrey (2017) Psychological War in Vietnam: Governmentality at The United States Information Agency. Geopolitics, 23 (3). pp. 661-689. ISSN 1465-0045

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Abstract

The United States Information Agency (USIA) has received little sustained scrutiny from critical military geographers, despite the major role it played in waging the Cold War. This article outlines the USIA’s role in waging psychological war in support of the US mission in Vietnam, notably its establishment in 1965 of the Joint United States Public Affairs Office (JUSPAO). Through an analysis of USIA operations, this article argues that psychological war can be understood as a governmental strategy to exert power over the people and territory of Vietnam. Through an examination of problems related to evaluating and conducting research for psychological war, this article questions the extent to which the United States succeeded in establishing this power, concluding that the effects of psychological war in Vietnam were, at best, inconclusive, and offer little evidence to support contemporary strategies to ‘win hearts and minds’.

Item Type:
Journal Article
Journal or Publication Title:
Geopolitics
Uncontrolled Keywords:
/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/3300/3320
Subjects:
?? political science and international relationsgeography, planning and development ??
ID Code:
181734
Deposited By:
Deposited On:
05 Jan 2023 14:55
Refereed?:
Yes
Published?:
Published
Last Modified:
09 Sep 2024 00:26