Remember When Diplomacy and the Arts Once Mattered?

Imagine a time when diplomacy mattered.  When the arts mattered. And when they could actually work together to project America at its best. Oh how we might long for the days of the Cold War.

Clausewitz said that diplomacy was simply war by other means. During the Cold War, that diplomacy took many forms. From Richard Nixon showing Khrushchev around an American Kitchen, to Ping Pong diplomacy with the Chinese

A little known form of diplomacy was the role that the arts played in the Cold War. Uniquely in the realm of dance in the hands of one of its great practitioners, and leaders, Martha Graham. Although Graham claimed she was not political, her company and her work were a real part of America’s Cold War propaganda apparatus.

Victoria Phillips tells the story in Martha Graham's Cold War: The Dance of American Diplomacy

My conversation with Victoria Phillips:

Not Your Father's CIA

When looking at the world of the CIA, spycraft, and espionage, it fair to say that the images of both WWII and particularly the Cold War, shape our vision.  Unfortunately, it does not always allow us to understand the reinvented world of 21st-century coverts action and government secrecy.

Joining me to explore this, as he has done in his nine previous books about the CIA, is Washington Post global affairs columnist David Ignatius. His new book The Paladin:  he takes us inside today's very different world of spycraft.

My conversation with David Ignatius:

Spy vs. Spy...Then and Now

Listening to our political discourse today, vis a vis Russia, it brings back powerful reminders of the Cold War. A time when spies and covert action existed in what Le Carre called “a moral twilight.”

And yet when we think about people like Kim Philby or Alger Hiss or Aldrich Ames, is the way that they turned on their country any different than what we are seeing today?

We look at one of these instructive Cold War stories, True Believer: Stalin's Last American Spywith best selling author, and award winning journalist Kati Marton.

My conversation with Kati Marton:

The Cold War in Movies

This week we mark what was arguably the height of the Cold War, in the 50 anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis. That Cold War would, for years, permeate every aspect of our culture. The paranoia and anxiety of the period was perhaps most notably reflected in our films, and the divisions of the of the time were part and parcel of the industry that produced them.

One of our nations most distinguished film critics, J Hoberman looks at this connection between American movies and the Cold War in his new book An Army of Phantoms: American Movies and the Making of the Cold War.

My conversation with J. Hoberman:

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A Fiery Peace

Neil Sheehan is the embodiment of why good journalism is both necessary and relevant. In his new book A Fiery Peace in a Cold War: Bernard Schriever and the Ultimate Weapon, he shows us once again, as he did in A Bright Shining Lie, that the great movements of history turn on the character and actions of individuals. He tells us a story of how we avoided Armageddon during the Cold War and in so doing he helps to instruct us in the importance of appreciating the military and some of its best and brightest, while making sure that we are not overtaken by an overzealous military juggernaut. With balance, insight and an appreciation for history, Sheehan tells us a vivid story for our times and for all times.

My conversation with Neil Sheehan:

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The Beginning of History

Twenty Years ago, this November, the Berlin Wall came down and with it the end of the Cold War.  For the next twelve years, we entered what some called "the end of history."  Then on September 11th, 2001 all of that changed. How did the events of those twelve years lead to 9/11 and how did it shape the world we live in today?  James Goldgeier, professor at The George Washington University and senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations explains, in his new book America Between the Wars: From 11/9 to 9/11, what happened and why.  

My conversation with James Goldgeier: 

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Rashid Khalidi explains the impact of the Cold War on the current Middle East Conflicts

While usually followed by controversy, there can be little doubt about the soundness of Rashid Khalidi’s arguments that today’s Middle East conflicts are, in large measure, shaped by the Cold War. In his new book Sowing Crisis: The Cold War and American Dominance in the Middle East Khalidi shows how the global conflicts now playing out in the Middle East were significantly shaped and exacerbated by the Cold War era, and that any successful peace process must begin with a through understanding of these historical antecedents.

My conversation with Rashid Khalidi:                                                 Powered by Podbean.com