Henry R. Luce, Time, and the American Crusade in Asia

by Robert Edwin Herzstein

This book shows how Henry Robinson Luce used his famous magazines to advance his interventionist agenda in Cold War China, Korea, Japan, and above all, Vietnam. This is the first balanced work on Luce and his influence, using hitherto undiscovered or inaccessible sources. Luce saw the American Century as the heir to the fading British Empire; he failed to see the hubris and cultural blindness that would lead to disaster in Vietnam - a disaster for which his magazines paved the way.

Genres: History, China, Biography

366 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Robert Herzstein was a historian who taught at the University of South Carolina. A graduate of New York University, in 1986 he helped to uncover Austrian politician and former UN Secretary-General Kurt Waldhem's past association with the Nazi Party.

Reviews

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well researched and presented, although the author clearly has a chip on his shoulder re Henry Luce and Time Magazine. (Who could blame him? He grew up reading and believing everything it said and belatedly came to realize the strong agenda behind the Luce Machine's publications.)

Herzstein exposes the hubristic agenda behind all of Time's stories and how much it influenced America's thinking during the last century. It continues into this century. Indeed, Time and Henry Luce, along with other powerful people who were influenced by his ideas, may be responsible for the continuing American belief that we are superior to other countries and need to help them become more like us.

An important work for anybody who truly wants to make America a better place.