Jeffrey Whyte, "The Birth of Psychological War: Propaganda, Espionage, and Military Violence from WWII to the Vietnam War" (Oxford UP, 2023)

Dec 27, 2023

Jeffrey Whyte, author of The Birth of Psychological War: Propaganda, Espionage, and Military Violence from WWII to the Vietnam War, discusses the evolution of psychological warfare from its origins in WWII to the Vietnam War. He explores the tactics and strategies used, including white and black propaganda, the impact on the average American, and the connection to counterinsurgency in Vietnam.

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Introduction

00:00 • 2min

Origins and Definition of Psychological Warfare

01:40 • 28min

The Birth of Psychological War: Changing Geographies and Challenging Isolationism

30:04 • 3min

The Evolution of Psychological Warfare in World War II

32:44 • 21min

The Impact of Enrolling the Average American in Psychological Warfare

53:59 • 2min

Cywar, Psychological Warfare, and Counterinsurgency

56:27 • 24min

The Birth of Psychological War: Propaganda, Espionage, and Military Violence from WWII to the Vietnam War

01:20:30 • 2min

Jeffrey Whyte's book The Birth of Psychological War: Propaganda, Espionage, and Military Violence from WWII to the Vietnam War (Oxford UP, 2023) 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.

Dr. Whyte earned his Ph.D. with the Department of Geography, University of British Columbia and before that a MA with School of Communication, Simon Fraser University, also in beautiful British Columbia. He is currently Lecturer in International Relations at the Department of Politics, Philosophy, and Religion, Lancaster University.

Michael G. Vann is a professor of world history at California State University, Sacramento. A specialist in imperialism and the Cold War in Southeast Asia, he is the author of The Great Hanoi Rat Hunt: Empires, Disease, and Modernity in French Colonial Vietnam (Oxford University Press, 2018). When he’s not reading or talking about new books with smart people, Mike can be found surfing in Santa Cruz, California.

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