Review: \u3cem\u3e50 Jahre WDR: Am Puls der Zeit\u3c/em\u3e by Klaus Katz et al. (eds.)

A review of the book 50 Jahre WDR: Am Puls der Zeit by Klaus Katz et al. (eds.) (Köln: Verlag Kiepenheuer & Witsch; 3 volumes, 2006

Westwinds: The Impact of American TV Shows on German Television and Culture in the 1960s

Coming on the heels of the economic “miracle,” as West German and international observers described the dramatic turnaround of the 1950s, West German consumer culture fully came of age in the 1960s. The most severe consequences of postwar deprivations like starvation, rationing or the focus on sheer economic survival became a thing of the past for most West Germans. The consumerist cornucopia promised particularly by the victorious United States, long desired and emulated, increasingly became a lived reality for quickly expanding segments of the population in the Federal Republic. From increased motorization and home ownership to a rapid influx of household and electrical appliances, increased disposable income fueled a leap towards a consumer culture already nascent in the late 1950s. West Germans worked less, spend more and began their eternal love affair with mass tourism. By the second half of the 1960s, commentators spoke of the emergence of a “modern way of life” and “new society” in West Germany

Review: \u3cem\u3eThe Media Were American: U.S. Mass Media in Decline\u3c/em\u3e by Jeremy Tunstall

A review of the book The Media Were American: U.S. Mass Media in Decline by Jeremy Tunstall (New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008

Radio and the Americanization of German Culture in the 1960s and 1970s

The purpose of this paper is to situate the development of German radio—more specifically West German radio here—in the context of the social and cultural changes in the Federal Republic in the 1960s and 1970s. The major themes and contexts which I will focus on are 1) the development of radio in West Germany in the postwar period; 2) the cultural changes of the late 1950s and early 1960s, when the mass media and consumer culture converged in very dynamic ways to radically alter the daily habits of West German society and 3) the influence of American pop culture in these developments, combined with the question of how this fits into the concept of the “Americanization” of European culture in the postwar period

Review: \u3cem\u3eHitler\u27s Radio War\u3c/em\u3e by Roder Tidy

A review of the book Hitler\u27s Radio War by Roger Tidy (London: Robert Hale, 2011

Review: \u3cem\u3eOne World, Big Screen: Hollywood, the Allies, and World War II\u3c/em\u3e by M. Todd Bennett

A review of the book Big Screeen: Hollywood, the Allies, and World War II by M. Todd Bennett (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2012

Review: \u3cem\u3eElectric Sounds: Technological Change and the Rise of Corporate Mass Media\u3c/em\u3e by Steve J. Wurtzler

A review of the book Electric Sounds: Technological Change and the Rise of Corporate Mass Media by Steve Wurtzler (New York: Columbia University Press, 2007

Review: \u3cem\u3eDeutschland und die USA in der Internationalen Geschichte des 20. Jahrhunderts: Festschrift für Detlef Junker\u3c/em\u3e by Manfred Berg and Philipp Gassert (eds.)

A review of the book Deutschland und die USA in der Internationalen Geschichte des 20. Jahrhunderts by Manfred Berg and Philipp Gassert (eds.) (Stuttgart: Steiner Verlag, 2004

Review: Americanization and Anti-Americanism in Europe

A review of the books Americanization and Anti-Americanism: The German Encounter with American Culture After 1945 by Alexander Stephan (New York and Oxford: Berghahn Books, 2005) and The Americanization of Europe: Culture, Diplomacy, and Anti-Americanism After 1945 by Alexander Stephan (New York and Oxford: Berghahn Books, 2006

Can’t Buy Me Love: The Importation and Impact of Hollywood Films in the GDR in the 1970s

Still riding high on the wave of international recognition and athletic successes of the early 1970s, East Germany celebrated another first in late 1975. In the latter part of November 1975, the first Film Week of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) was held in the United States, hosted by the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Twenty-one East German films were exhibited to American audiences, many of them for the first time. Six years in the making and coming just one year after the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, this was clearly a momentous occasion for the country. Every little detail of the opening festivities was reported back to East Berlin: “During the evening dinner Mrs. Rockefeller [Director of the Museum] greeted our ambassador and the rest of his staff. Mrs. Rockefeller had a brief conversation with the ambassador.” In addition to chronicling the intermingling with the wealthy elite of New York’s high society, the author of the report clearly showed his relief that the events proceeded smoothly and without interruptions. “None of the conversations contained any critical comments,” he emphasized. “Quite to the contrary, everyone voiced praise and recognition for East Germany.