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Andrew HeiskellAndrew Heiskell
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I'm going to read you some quotes from a very anti-Luce book by a man named W. A. Swanberg. I forgot the title--Luce and his Empire, something like that. And the theme of the book, you know, was that Luce was one of the most vocal and persuasive “Cold Warriors,” and that his magazines were the vehicle for this communication, particularly LIFE, through the editorials. And let me just read you some things, and I want you to comment on them afterwards, if you have a comment. This is from Swanberg: “LIFE, whose editorial line was closely supervised by Luce, was mobilizing the nation for battle against Russia in frequent editorials and feature articles. It accused Acheson of an againstness so laggard that he sought to maintain peace with the Soviet Union, saying that he seemed,”--now this is a quote from LIFE--”‘to assume a point at which accommodation if not formal agreement with Soviet communism would be possible.’ This was not possible, said LIFE, although Russia now had the bomb.”

Quote--this is from LIFE, “'There can be no compromise that can enable the two worlds to live their lives in separate peace.”' Again: “After the start of the Korean War, despite occasional ambivalent moments of pause, LIFE's jingoist tone was uppermost. It assailed the administration for letting ‘cliches become the basis of thinking on foreign policy.’ In subsequent issues it began biting the bullet: ‘The prospect is war.’ ‘World War III was never closer.’ These are all separate quotes that he has taken from different parts of LIFE. ‘At last we know our enemy.’ ‘War with communist China does not necessarily entail involvement with its mass armies.’ ‘War to the finish.’ ‘War now.”’

Another quote--he goes on to say--this is a quote from LIFE





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