Selling War: The British Propaganda Campaign against American "Neutrality" in World War II

by Nicholas John Cull

"British propaganda brought America to the brink of war, and left it to the Japanese and Hitler to finish the job." So concludes Nicholas Cull in this absorbing study of how the United States was transformed from isolationism to belligerence in the years before the attack on Pearl Harbor. From the moment it realized that all was lost without American aid, the British Government employed a host of persuasive tactics to draw the US to its rescue. With the help of talents as varied as those of matinee idol Leslie Howard, Oxford philosopher Isaiah Berlin and society photographer Cecil Beaton, no section of America remained untouched and no method--from Secret Service intrigue to the publication of horrifying pictures of Nazi atrocities--remained untried. The British sought and won the support of key journalists and broadcasters, including Edward R. Murrow, Dorothy Thompson and Walter Winchell; Hollywood film makers also played a willing part. Cull details these and other propaganda
activities, covering the entire range of the British effort. A fascinating story of how a foreign country provoked America's involvement in its greatest war, Selling War will appeal to all those interested in the modern cultural and political history of Britain and the United States.

Genres: History, World War II, British Literature

304 pages, Paperback

First published February 9, 1995

Reviews

[Al Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very good as a pioneering piece on an understudied and misunderstood aspect of all wars, and not just WWII. But the organization of the narrative lacked a consistency and flow, and was more a collection of vignettes vs. a studied review. There were many aspects that were left out of the British propaganda effort due to the counter narrative it would present, and it is unfortunate that the author chose to omit various aspects especially in relation to the period between the start of the European war in September of 1939 and the final entry of the US with relation to the Pacific, where Churchill was not interested in engaging the Japanese except as a defense of the UKs own occupied areas.

All in all an excellent start however to those wanting to understand how the US even today must be influenced to go to war, and a lesson for all democracies as well.

[Rayrumtum · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fascinating look at British information operations in the US prior to its entry into the war to persuade the US first to give aid and later enter itself. It discusses all forms of information operations including literature and movies. While I was reading the book, mention of some of these movies inspired me to watch them for the first time or again. Although the story is informative, I found the writing a bit stiff. In addition, he seems to dwell on naming people who occupied different positions, but then does not develop their importance.

At a time we are all talking about Russian information operations in the US and some European countries, this is a reminder of how such actions are undertaken although now the internet eases transmitting the message.

[Michael Ritchie · Rating 3 out of 5]

When England first went to war against Germany in 1939, the U.S. was strongly isolationist, not wanting to step in and get involved, but there was a feeling that without American help, the Allies would lose to Hitler. So British intelligence used propaganda to try and change the American mood. There are some interesting tidbits here concerning the ways in which the British were able to use movie, radio, newspapers and even books to slowly move our country to intervene (mostly with loans, arms and supplies)--though of course it would take Pearl Harbor to actually get us into the war--but this is mostly a dry-as-dust examination of the propaganda bureaus and the people who worked for them. There must be a more interesting way to tell these stories.