Radio Free Europe in the Cold War

Paper Summary:

The paper assesses the impact of the Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty organizations on the Cold War. The paper analyzes how the merged RFE/RL organization accomplished its mission across the Iron Curtain during the 1980s. The paper also illustrates how by becoming the vehicle that mobilized the frontier rebellions of Eastern European countries against the Soviet Union, RFE/RL had both a very direct and indirect influence on the collapse of the Soviet Union.

From the Paper:

"During the Cold War, tension between Western and Eastern Europe was extremely high. The existence of the Iron Curtain and its subsequent information cut off across this divide makes it extremely hard for American propaganda efforts to turn Soviet allies to the US. The development of the RFE or Radio Free Europe was part of the CIA's initiative to spread pro-American sentiment in Eastern Europe, behind the Iron Curtain. The program itself can be seen as a radio and communications organization, with funding specifically from the United States Congress and the CIA. The organization exists in Europe and the Middle East, with broadcasting of one thousand hours per week in over twenty eight different languages. Through the combined efforts of the RFE and the RL, Radio Liberty, organizations America was able to greatly influence a grass roots movement towards social mobility against communism."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Puddington, A. (2003). Broadcasting Freedom: The Cold War Triumph of Radio FreeEurope and Radio Liberty. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky.
• Franda, M. (2001). Launching Into Cyberspace. Boston: Lynne Rienner Publishers.
• Berend, I. (1999). Central and Eastern Europe, 1944-1993: Detour from thePeriphery to the Periphery. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press.
• Sosin, G. (1999). Sparks of Liberty: An Insider's Memoir of Radio Liberty.Philadelphia: Penn State Press.
• Ramet, S. P. (1999). Eastern Europe: Politics, Culture, and Society Since 1939.Indiana : Indiana University Press.

More papers on Radio Free Europe in the Cold War:

• Article Review # 122091 : "Review of "The Cold War: What do we Now Know?"
• Analytical Essay # 66991 : "The Cold War"
• Book Review # 124367 : "The Cold War"

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