This book seeks to address US public diplomacy strategies in Latin America, of particular importance during the 1960s when the leadership of the United States had been questioned after the Cuban Revolution.

The implicit mandate was "No more Cubas" so that what happened in the Caribbean country would not spread to other countries. The actions of the United States toward its southern neighbors in the first half of the twentieth century are quite well known. In contrast, Latin American scenarios of the Cultural Cold War have remained relatively less well known. The contributors and editors of this volume examine various facets and means of action used by the "US machinery of persuasion" with the aim of disseminating the virtues of its socioeconomic and political model, including both public and private efforts, and the significance of nonstate actors. Subjects examined include the impact of the theory of modernization; anti-Americanism; the deployment of public diplomacy in the region; the activities of the Congress for Cultural Freedom and the Rockefeller Foundation; and the influence of these efforts on sporting, artistic, and musical events.

This volume will be of value to students and scholars alike interested in Latin American history and history of the Americas.

About the Author

Francisco Rodriguez-Jimenez is currently working at the Instituto de Ciencias Sociais in Lisbon and was formerly a postdoctoral researcher at Harvard University and Fulbrighter at American University and George Washington University. His research centers around the so-called Cultural Cold War. Among his latest publications: Trump. Historia de una presidencia singular (2022).

Lorenzo Delgado Gomez-Escalonilla is Senior Researcher at the National Research Council of Spain (CSIC). He has worked on Euro-Atlantic relations during the Cold War, especially public diplomacy and cultural, educational, and scientific transfers. Among his recent publications: Teaching Modernization. Spanish and Latin American Educational Reform in the Cold War (2020).

Benedetta Calandra is Associate Professor of History of the Americas at the University of Bergamo. Her main research interests focus on the politics of memory and exile in Latin America and Inter-American cultural Cold War. Among her recent publications: Cultural Philanthropy and Political Exile. The Ford Foundation Between Argentina and the United States (2019).

Reviews

"This is an important book on American soft power and its limitations. Anyone with an interest in US public diplomacy and/or in Cold War US-Latin American relations should read it."

Arne WESTAD, Yale University

"This is an essential interdisciplinary volume that adds much to the history of the Cold War in Latin America and the region's long-sixties. Through the lens of public diplomacy, culture, philanthropy, sport and security, US Public Diplomacy Strategies in Latin America During the Sixties reveals the complex networks and interactions that underpinned transnational, inter-American and transatlantic relations in the mid-20th century."

Tanya HARMER, London School of Economics and Political Science

"At long last! With this exceptional collection of original research, we finally have a comprehensive single-volume history of the battle for hearts and minds in Latin America. This book makes a vital contribution to our knowledge and understanding of US public diplomacy, and its impact and reception in the Western Hemisphere. Readers interested in US foreign policy, Latin American history, and the 'Cultural Cold War' will want this book on their shelf."

Kenneth OSGOOD, Colorado School of Mines

"US Public Diplomacy Strategies in Latin America During the Sixties is an incredibly rich and diverse collection of contributions by an all-star cast that stretches our understanding of US public diplomacy in Latin America in pioneering ways. Required reading for diplomats and scholars alike!"

Christian OSTERMANN, Woodrow Wilson Center

Book Information
ISBN 9781032155685
Author Francisco Rodriguez-Jimenez
Format Paperback
Page Count 330
Imprint Routledge
Publisher Taylor & Francis Ltd
Weight(grams) 635g