American Publishers, Books, and the Global Cultural Cold War: Alfred A. Knopf Inc. and the United States Information Agency, 1953-1970

Abstract

During the Cold War, books were regarded as one means of “winning hearts and minds.” The US government engaged in a number of book activities as part of their cultural diplomacy and information efforts around the world. These book programs have only been briefly studied, and there has been little close examination in the scholarship as to how they operated, how texts were modified or adapted, or what the role and motivation of publishers were in such book programs. This article seeks to address this gap in the literature through an examination of the prestigious American publisher Alfred A. Knopf Inc. and their work with US government book programs. In doing so, it is possible to gain insight not just into the nature of American Cold War book programs, but also into the “state-private network” that underpinned many Cold War activities.