"We shall never be able to remove suspicion and fear as potential causes of war until communication is permitted to flow, free and open, across international boundaries"
About this Quote
Truman is making an unusually blunt bargain: peace isn’t just a matter of treaties or troop counts, it’s a matter of information. Suspicion and fear, he argues, are not tragic quirks of human nature; they’re politically manufactured conditions that thrive when borders also function as blackout curtains. The sentence reads like a policy memo with moral urgency, hinging on “permitted” and “across international boundaries” - a reminder that censorship, propaganda, and closed societies aren’t side issues to diplomacy but its accelerants.
The intent is strategic as much as idealistic. In the early Cold War, the U.S. was learning that postwar conflict could be waged through narratives, not just armies. Truman’s emphasis on “free and open” communication is a shot at regimes that monopolize truth at home and weaponize misinformation abroad. He’s also signaling a distinctly American confidence that openness is inherently stabilizing: if people can see and hear each other directly, the logic goes, demagogues lose their oxygen.
Subtextually, it’s an argument for soft power dressed as peacemaking. “Communication” means radio, press access, cultural exchange, and the ability to contest state-controlled stories. It frames transparency as a security policy: reduce ignorance, reduce paranoia, reduce the political market for preemptive violence. Truman isn’t claiming openness eliminates conflict; he’s insisting that without it, war remains structurally easy to sell.
The intent is strategic as much as idealistic. In the early Cold War, the U.S. was learning that postwar conflict could be waged through narratives, not just armies. Truman’s emphasis on “free and open” communication is a shot at regimes that monopolize truth at home and weaponize misinformation abroad. He’s also signaling a distinctly American confidence that openness is inherently stabilizing: if people can see and hear each other directly, the logic goes, demagogues lose their oxygen.
Subtextually, it’s an argument for soft power dressed as peacemaking. “Communication” means radio, press access, cultural exchange, and the ability to contest state-controlled stories. It frames transparency as a security policy: reduce ignorance, reduce paranoia, reduce the political market for preemptive violence. Truman isn’t claiming openness eliminates conflict; he’s insisting that without it, war remains structurally easy to sell.
Quote Details
| Topic | Peace |
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