HIS 374 The Birth of Modern Propoganda: A Media History of the First World War
The First World War (1914-18) is considered to be the "seminal catastrophe of the 20th century." Due to the rising stakes amidst massive carnage, this global conflict triggered not only military, social, and political revolutions, but also triggered far-reaching changes regarding cultural politics and media. Throughout the war years, high-brow and popular culture got involved into the war effort as well as journalism and the emerging film industries. At the same time, the role of support for the war effort at the "home front" is a hotly contested issue within scholarship. This interdisciplinary Honors Seminar seeks to bring these different perspectives together, exploring the various means of censorship, propaganda and mass mobilization by the belligerent powers as well as the contemporary strategies of autonomy and even resistance.