The debate over US involvement in World War II was a turning point
in the history of both US foreign policy and radio. In this book
the author argues that the debate's historical significance cannot
be fully appreciated unless these stories are understood in
relation rather than in isolation. All the participants in the
Great Debate took for granted the importance of radio and made it
central to their efforts. While they generally worked within
radio's rules, they also tried to work around or even break those
rules, setting the stage for changes that ultimately altered the
way media managed American political discourse. This study breaks
with traditional accounts that see radio as an industry biased in
favor of interventionism. Rather, radio fully aired the opposing
positions in the debate. It nonetheless failed to resolve fully
their differences. Despite the initial enthusiasm for radio's
educational potential, participants on both sides came to doubt
their conviction that radio could change minds. Radio increasingly
became a tool to rally existing supporters more than to recruit new
ones. Only events ended the debate over US involvement in World War
II. The larger question-of what role the US should play in world
affairs-remained.
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