A Campaign of Truth: The State Department, Propaganda, and the Olympic Games, 1950–1952

2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 4-27
Author(s):  
Toby C. Rider
Keyword(s):  
Cold War ◽  
Olympic Games ◽  
State Department ◽  
International Olympic Committee ◽  
The State ◽  
Federal Funds ◽  
Stalin Era ◽  
The Cold War ◽  
The Olympic Games

Scholars who have examined the role of the Olympic Games in U.S. Cold War strategy have dealt mostly with the post-Stalin era, when the Olympic Games were a stage for “symbolic combat” between athletes from the East and West and a cultural force with a powerful and compelling message that could be used for political gain. The Games were overseen by the International Olympic Committee, which both influenced and was influenced by the actions of world leaders and states. Although U.S. officials generally refused to approve federal funds for the national Olympic team, they took steps to manipulate the Games for propaganda purposes. The Cold War origins of such activities have not yet been clearly delineated. This article shows that Harry Truman's administration in the late 1940s and early 1950s was the first to address and to take advantage of the propaganda potential of the Olympics in the Cold War era, and this transformative period coincided with, and was driven by, the government's much expanded information offensive, the “Campaign of Truth.”

‘The Continuation of Politics by Other Means’: Britain, the Two Germanys and the Olympic Games, 1949–1972

2009 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 443-474 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. GERALD HUGHES ◽  
RACHEL J. OWEN
Keyword(s):  
Cold War ◽  
Olympic Games ◽  
East Germany ◽  
West Germany ◽  
German State ◽  
German States ◽  
British Perspective ◽  
The Cold War ◽  
International Sport ◽  
The Olympic Games

AbstractThis article evaluates the interplay between international sport and international politics during the cold war through an examination of the two Germanys and the Olympics from a British perspective. Germany was at the centre of Olympic and cold war politics between 1945 and the early 1970s, and the two German states competed fiercely over questions of national legitimacy. West Germany was initially successful in denying international recognition to the ‘other’ German state. East Germany countered this by developing a strategy that utilised international sport, particularly the Olympic Games, to further its claims for statehood. While recognising the flaws in the West German case against East Germany, British policy was constrained by the need to accommodate Bonn's sensibilities, given that the Federal Republic was a major ally. An examination of this ‘Olympian’ struggle from a British perspective tells us much about the West's cold war strategy and casts new light on this arena of East–West competition.

Thailand at the Margins

2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jim Glassman
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Cold War ◽  
Economic Crisis ◽  
The State ◽  
World War ◽  
Industrial Transformation ◽  
Role Of The State ◽  
Economic Boom ◽  
The Cold War

Jim Glassman addresses the role of the state in the industrial transformation of what was, before the economic crisis of 1997-98, one of Southeast Asia's fastest growing economies. Analyzing the Cold War period, the period of the economic boom, as well as the economic crisis and its political aftershock, Thailand at the Margins recasts the story of the Thai state's post-World War II development performance by focusing on uneven industrialization and the interaction between internationalization and the transformation of Thai labor.

‘Chinese rings’: the United States, the two Chinas and the 1960 Squaw Valley Winter Olympics

2018 ◽  
pp. 185-202 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Cold War ◽  
State Department ◽  
The United States ◽  
The State ◽  
Specific Reference ◽  
Winter Olympics ◽  
Winter Olympic Games ◽  
The Cold War ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
International Sport

This chapter examines the inter-relationship of sport and diplomacy with specific reference to the 1960 Winter Olympic Games (held in Squaw Valley, California). More specifically, it evaluates State Department involvement in the ongoing issue of the recognition of the “Two China’s” during the Cold War, with specific reference to international sport. Despite long-standing official non-involvement in international sporting matters, hosting the 1960 Games focussed US diplomatic attention on the opportunities and problems presented by the Olympics within the wider Cold War. Crucially, the State Department extended considerable behind-the-scenes efforts both before and during the Squaw Valley Games in an attempt ensure Nationalist Chinese participation. Overall, this chapter will demonstrate that despite claims of non-involvement, the State Department specifically utilised international sport – and particularly the Olympics – as a tool of diplomacy during the Cold War. This was drawn into particularly sharp focus when the Games were being hosted on American soil, as they were in Squaw Valley in 1960.

Hosting the Olympics: why are we always getting the cost wrong?

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maroula Khraiche ◽  
Abhinav Alakshendra
Keyword(s):  
Los Angeles ◽  
Olympic Games ◽  
International Olympic Committee ◽  
Cost Overrun ◽  
Review Of Literature ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Constant Cost ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Olympic Games

PurposeIn the last 50 years, every Olympics has experienced a major cost overrun. This paper explores the reasons for this cost underestimation and looks into the occurrence of the winner's curse. We also forecast the spending pattern of future host cities. Finally, we discuss the role of the International Olympic Committee in making the Olympic Games more efficient and sustainable.Design/methodology/approachThe review of literature on the topic of constant cost overrun in the Olympic Games is surprisingly very thin. We comprehensively review the existing literature to understand the scholarship in this area. This paper also produces future cost trends for the host cities.FindingsWe argue that cost underestimation is resulting from the outdated bid process which encourages spectacle over efficiency. A no-bid environment is more efficient and allows the host city to negotiate effectively with the International Olympic Committee. The Los Angeles Games of 1984 was profitable and has shown reusing the infrastructure can save a lot of money which could help make the Olympic Games economically sustainable.Originality/valueThis paper adds to the existing knowledge on the cost overrun aspect of Olympics financing. We also forecast the cost trends of hosting future Olympics.

scholarly journals Tematyka olimpijska w audycjach Rozgłośni Polskiej Radia Wolna Europa

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
pp. 27-41
Author(s):  
Roman Wróblewski
Keyword(s):  
Cold War ◽  
Olympic Games ◽  
Policy Influence ◽  
Radio Free Europe ◽  
The Cold War ◽  
The Olympic Games

The author presents the Olympic theme in Polish broadcasts of Radio Free Europe, which was one of the main media of the information war during the Cold War. Did the policy influence the content of these programmes? The answer to this question is in the negative. The Olympic Games on Radio Free Europe were presented in a professional manner. Journalists knew sports and sporting competition was the most important for them. Political content in programmes about Olympic competitions was avoided. 

The National Council of Negro Women and Apartheid

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas Grant
Keyword(s):  
Cold War ◽  
Black Women ◽  
African Americans ◽  
International Politics ◽  
State Department ◽  
The State ◽  
National Council ◽  
African Child ◽  
The Poor ◽  
The Cold War

This chapter examines the anti-apartheid politics of the Washington-based National Council of Negro Women (NCNW). Outlining the organization’s broader commitment to black international politics, it shows how its leadership worked with the State Department as it ought to expand its international activities in this era. As such, the chapter demonstrates how black liberals adapted to the climate of the Cold War when attempting to challenge colonialism overseas. Finally, by tracing the involvement of the NCNW with the African Children’s Feeding Scheme initiative, the chapter documents how highly gendered representations of the African family worked to promote a diasporic consciousness among African Americans. During the 1950s, images of the oppressed African mother, the poor and malnourished African child, and the African family in need of protection were deliberately employed as gendered motifs around which black women could build international alliances.

South Africa, Apartheid and the Olympic Games

STADION ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 116-137
Author(s):  
Jan Hangebrauck
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Cold War ◽  
Democratic Republic ◽  
Olympic Games ◽  
Federal Republic Of Germany ◽  
Sporting Event ◽  
Olympic Movement ◽  
The Cold War ◽  
First Time ◽  
The Olympic Games

South Africa was part of the Olympic Movement for more than two decades after apartheid had been officially introduced in 1948. In 1964 South Africa was excluded from the sporting event for the first time, and in 1970 it was formally expelled from the Olympic Movement. It had to wait until 1992 for its return when South Africa participated in the Olympic Games in Barcelona and won two medals. In the first part, this article describes South Africa’s development to exclusion and then back to its return by examining reasons for the late expulsion from, and re-entry to, the Olympic family. The next part looks at reactions of the governments and national sports federations (NFs) of Great Britain, the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the German Democratic Republic (GDR) to South Africa’s exclusion and its return against the backdrop of the Cold War. This paper further analyses the general attitudes of those actors towards apartheid (in sports). The conclusion points out the implications of South Africa’s sporting isolation and additional research gaps.

scholarly journals Harnessing Human Rights to the Olympic Games: Human Rights Watch and the 1993 ‘Stop Beijing’ Campaign

2016 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 415-438 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara Keys
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Cold War ◽  
Olympic Games ◽  
Moral Legitimacy ◽  
Post Cold War ◽  
Playing Field ◽  
Human Rights Organizations ◽  
Moral Claims ◽  
The Cold War ◽  
The Olympic Games

In 1993 Human Rights Watch, one of the two most influential human rights organizations in the world, launched a major campaign to derail Beijing's bid to host the 2000 Olympic Games. This article situates this highly publicized campaign in the context of Sino–US relations, the end of the Cold War, and the ‘victory’ of human rights as a global moral lingua franca. It argues that Human Rights Watch's decision to oppose Beijing's bid stemmed from its new post-Cold War focus on China combined with the organization's search for new ways to secure media attention and the funding that flowed from publicity. The campaign most likely swayed the International Olympic Committee's close vote in favor of Sydney. It also brought Human Rights Watch a windfall of favorable publicity among new audiences. The article argues that the campaign irrevocably inserted broad-based human rights considerations into the Olympic Games, decisively moving moral claims-making around the Olympics beyond the playing field. It also linked Human Rights Watch's moral legitimacy to US power in problematic ways and triggered a powerful anti-US backlash in China.

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