CCWS is pleased to be co-sponsoring this event with the History Associates. So put down that Captain America comic and join us for this exciting event! 'Nuff said.

CCWS proudly co-sponsors a presentation by our own Paul Hirsch: "Why Are These Men Smiling? The Cold War in Comics." In this talk Mr. Hirsch discusses the ways American policymakers capitalized on the popularity of the comic book medium to win the hearts and minds of people around the world during the Cold War. This talk is based on his dissertation Pulp Empire: Comic, Culture, and U.S. Foreign Policy from 1942-1955, which draws on extensive archival research to uncover the untold history of comic books, American propaganda campaigns, and the international struggles in the middle part of the twentieth century.

Mr. Hirsch is a PhD candidate in the UCSB History department whose area of expertise includes American comic books and foreign policy from 1940s to the 60s. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including an integrative graduate education and research traineeship from the National Science Foundation, a dissertation research award from the Borchard Foundation for European Studies, and a graduate studies award from the Philip and Aida Siff Educational Foundation. He was also the recipient of UCSB's Lawrence Badash Prize in the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in 2005.