Colloquium 238 - Propaganda During Wars

Civil wars are conflicts that develop between a country’s government and an armed group rebelling against it. These conflicts can often be lengthy, gruesome, and quite resource intensive. Yet, oftentimes, actors fighting these wars decide to divert time, money, and resources away from the battlefield to engage in propaganda campaigns in foreign countries, touting themselves as the legitimate representatives of that country. When are these campaigns more likely to happen? And why? This research colloquium will explore these questions, both theoretically and empirically. Students will learn several research skills: how to gather evidence, how to understand multiple sources of evidence, and how to build and test arguments. We will meet once a week for two hours and one half, with additional independent work of at least 10-12 hours per week expected.

This course is part of a model of tutorials at Amherst designed to enable students to engage in substantive research with faculty in the humanities and humanistic social sciences.

Open to juniors and sophomores interested in research. Limited to 6 students. Spring Semester. Professor Mattiacci.