Film And The Cold War Propaganda:A Case Study Of Hollywood

The strong confrontation of ideology is one of the most significant features of the Cold War.The United States Government developed a detailed propaganda strategy and waged a fierce propaganda campaign on a global scale in order to win over the minds and hearts,in which Hollywood films played a important role.As one of the most essential mass media in the 20th century,the film had become an important carrier of ideological communication because of its wide audience,strong appeal and rich information storage.Hollywood had thus become the frontier of the Cold War.In fact,although the whole-scale Cold War started in 1947,using films to spread the story of the Cold War began as early as 1917 when the Bolsheviks established the Soviet Republic.In this sense,the Cold War in Hollywood lasted longer and had a more profound impact.From 1917 to 1990,there are a large number of Hollywood productions containing the Cold War ideology,they often had similar themes and discourse patterns,which then became an important propaganda tool for the U.S.government to shape the image of nation,promote national policies,and influence public opinions at home and abroad.On the one hand,Hollywood actively cooperated with the government to develop the political function of Hollywood films under the joint drive of profit and conservative political beliefs of members in the industry.On the other hand,Hollywood was also the recipient and transmitter of the Cold War mentality.Hollywood's propaganda had been positively influenced by the U.S.government,which is mainly reflected in the U.S.government's support and supervision of Hollywood.In a word,The political function of Hollywood had been greatly strengthened during this period,for that Hollywood played an important role in shaping international relations.On the basis of historical materials such as the Foreign Relations of the United States and relevant film texts,this dissertation investigates the interaction between Hollywood,politics and propaganda during the Cold War,which aims to examine the development of Hollywood films in a broader context,and further explore the political function of films,thus respond to the question that how the film affect the international relations based on the picture of Hollywood's film propaganda during the Cold War.The dissertation has five main parts:The introduction mainly expounds the reason and significance of the topic selection.By combing the relevant researches of domestic and foreign,this research aims to find out what is worth further pursing,and then narrates the creative ideas and innovations of the thesis.The first chapter is the relationship between the film and the Cold War propaganda strategy.It mainly tracks the formation process of the Cold War propaganda strategy.The propaganda strategy of the Cold War was the product of strong ideological confrontation,developed on the basis of historical practice(World War ? and World War ?),in which the film became the most important tool for propaganda because of its unique attributes.The second chapter combs Hollywood's propaganda films during the Cold War.From 1917 to 1990,the development of Hollywood Cold War films could be roughly divided into four stages,in which different stages reflected different political needs.However,in relevant Cold War films,the transmission of Cold War mentality often had typical themes and patterns.American ideology was fully demonstrated and continuously enhanced by denying the other,showing American dream,emphasizing on common risk and Pax Americana.The third chapter explains the government factors behind Hollywood's propaganda in the Cold War.In order to give full play to Hollywood's political function,The U.S.government had taken active actions,which were mainly reflected in supporting Hollywood's film-making,paving the way for the global distribution of Hollywood films,and regulating the film industry.The fourth chapter makes an in-depth evaluation on the political function of Hollywood's films during the Cold War.Hollywood's role in disseminating ideology and sharing information was confirmed during the Cold War.At Abroad,The release and dissemination of Hollywood films had changed people's opinions on related matters,and played an important role in promoting American ideology and deepening American cultural influence.At home,Hollywood films had laid an ideological foundation for the American government to explain the relevant Cold War policy.Meanwhile,the thinking conveyed by the film had also shaped the memory of individuals to some extent,and thus had an impact on the formulation of national policies.The fifth chapter is conclusion.The Cold War in ideology was a war without smoke of gunpowder,but full of invisible competition.It was more productive and lasting compared with the Cold War in the traditional sense.In response to the Soviet Union's global cultural offensive,and even more to establish American cultural hegemony,Hollywood's films during the Cold War became the concentrated products under the influence of specific political situation and the historical religious cultural tradition,which played an important role in ending the Cold War and expanding American cultural influence.