Pub. date: 2009 | Online Pub. Date: December 16, 2009 | DOI: 10.4135/9781412972048 | Print ISBN: 9780761929574 | Online ISBN: 9781412972048| Publisher:SAGE Publications, Inc.About this encyclopedia
U.S. International Communications
U.S. international communications refer to American government-sponsored efforts at publicizing information about the country's actions, goals, and image abroad. Although they date back to World War I, when President Woodrow Wilson formed the Committee on Public Information in 1917, its activities ended as the War came to a close in 1919, and sustained attempts at reaching international audiences were not exercised prior to World War II. Since 1945, U.S. international communications predominantly refers to the country's official broadcasting, such as, among others, the Voice of America and Radio Free Europe, whose task was to disseminate information and views from the U.S. standpoint to foreign audiences during the cold war. These organizations are often credited with playing a crucial role in bringing down the Iron Curtain. After the attacks of September 11, 2001, these communication outlets have continued to promote America's image abroad, this time with an increasing focus on the ...