Cold War Rhetoric: Strategy, Metaphor, and Ideology

Cold War Rhetoric is the first book in over twenty years to bring a sustained rhetorical critique to bear on central texts of the Cold War. The rhetorical texts that are the subject of this book include speeches by Presidents Eisenhower and Kennedy, the Murrow- McCarthy confrontation on CBS, the speeches and writings of peace advocates, and the recurring theme of unAmericanism as it has been expressed in various media throughout the Cold War years. Each of the authors brings to his texts a particular approach to rhetorical criticism—strategic, metaphorical, or ideological. Each provides an introductory chapter on methodology that explains the assumptions and strengths of their particular approach.

Martin J. Medhurst is Distinguished Professor of Rhetoric and Communication at Baylor University in Waco, Texas. He is the author or editor of ten books, is a frequent contributor to journals in rhetoric and communication studies and has published 60 articles/chapters. Medhurst is the founding editor of the journal Rhetoric & Public Affairs and of the scholarly book series of the same title, both published by Michigan State University Press. He currently serves as the general editor of the ten volume series, A Rhetorical History of the United States, and as general editor of the Presidential Rhetoric book series, the Library of Presidential Rhetoric monograph series, and the Landmark Speeches monograph series.
Medhurst is the recipient of several honors and awards, including the 2005 National Communications Association Distinguished Scholar Award; the Paul Boase Prize for Scholarship; 1995 National Communication Association Marie Hochmuth Nichols Award for Outstanding Book or Monograph (for Eisenhower's War of Words); the National Communication Association Golden Anniversary Monograph Award for Outstanding Scholarship (with Michael A. DeSousa); and the Religious Communication Association Publication Award.

Robert L. Ivie is Professor and Chair of the Department of Speech Communication at Indiana University.

Philip Wander is Professor of Communication Studies at San Jose State University.

Robert L. Scott is Professor of Speech Communication at the University of Minnesota.