Session: Session 1, 12:00- 1:30 pm, Friday 9/29
Category: Roundtables
Location: Honors
Chair: Paxton Stover, Kansas State University
Speakers:
• Roberta Meloni, Kansas State University
• Matthew Kotowski, Kansas State University
• Roberto Noriega, Kansas State University
• Paxton Stover, Kansas State University
Abstract: The primary objective of this roundtable is to address the key role that perceptions between the United States and China played in the early years of the Cold War. Discussants seek to demonstrate how U.S. perceptions of and objectives toward China during the early stages of the Cold rarely matched the reality on the ground. The intent is to offer insights into how misleading perceptions between the United States and China hindered both countries’ relationships during and after the Korean War. By investigating American and Chinese perceptions from the lens of military history, U.S. foreign relations, and the history of technology, this roundtable aims to engage and stimulate the audience to reflect on the role short-sighted ideas and perceptions held by the U.S. affected U.S. cultural expansionism in China, to the point that outcomes often did not match the initial U.S. objectives. The goal is to introduce the public to the overarching themes that have characterized historical writings on American-East Asian relations while shedding light on new and compelling research on these fields.
Organization:
• Tentative Chair: Paxton Stover, Kansas State University, introduces discussants with a short bio. Time slot: 5minutes.
• Matt Kotowski, speaker #1, Kansas State University. Paper Title: Chinese Perceptions of the United States: An Analysis of Mao’s Political Speech during the Korean War. Time slot: 15 minutes.
• Roberto Noriega, speaker #2, Kansas State University. Paper Title: No Forward Contract: Civil-Military Relations in U.S. Intelligence during the Korean War. Time slot: 15 minutes.
• Roberta Meloni, speaker #3, Kansas State University. Paper Title: U.S., China, and the Limits of Technological Determinism: The Story of Radio Free Asia, 1951-1953. Time slot: 15 minutes.
• Paxton Stover, speaker #4, Kansas State University. Paper Title: American Perceptions of the Chinese Nuclear Program, 1950s-1960s. Time slot: 15 minutes.
• Q&A Session. Time slot: 20minutes.