The German Historical Institute seeks two articles, one on
"Transatlantic Elites" and one on the
"Media,"
for the second volume (covering the years 1968-1990) of its two-volume history of German-American relations in the era of the Cold War. The book is edited by Detlef Junker, the director of the German Historical Institute, and has more than 130 contributors from Europe and North America. The Cold War Project is a major effort by an international group of scholars to synthesize our knowledge of the mutual relationship between the two countries and covers all areas of interaction: politics, security, economics, culture, and society.
Each essay should be an original work and no more than 3750 words in length, including footnotes (approx. 15 double-spaced type-written pages). They can be written either in English or in German, as the Institute is publishing the book in Germany and the United States simultaneously. Essays will be translated into the other language by a professional translator hired by the Institute. We are prepared to offer an honorarium of the equivalent of DM 600.00 for each essay.
For details concerning the topics and particular issues that should be covered in the two essays, please see the description below.
If you are interested, please send us a short letter together with a CV, list of publications, and a brief outline of your essay. Prospective authors should have published on similar issues before, but we strongly encourage applications by younger scholars with expertise in these particular fields.
The deadline for submission of proposals is .
Please send your proposal to
Dr. David B. Morris, EditorThe project is already well advanced, and we plan to finalize the manuscript during the second half of 1998. We therefore will have to receive your contribution by June 1, 1998.
If you would like to receive a table of contents or any other information on the project, please do not hesitate to contact the Institute.
The essay should analyze the cooperation among elites in both countries between the late 1960s and the end of the Cold War in 1989/90. Particular emphasis should be given to political and business leaders. Cooperation among members of the military, the churches, labor unions, scholars, and journalists are covered by other essays in the book and should only be mentioned briefly, if at all.
The following issues are central:
Building on a description of the historic developments of the 1970s and the 1980s, a short outlook on developments after 1990 would be acceptable, but it should not be the focus of the contribution.
The essay should focus on individual personalities (journalists) as well as on structural and institutional preconditions for the reporting on Germany in the United States and on the United States in Germany. Because they are frequently unknown to an academic as well as a general audience, authors should present the basic facts about the technology and the personnel involved in media reporting on foreign countries. The article should deal with television, radio, news services, and the print media.
Particular stories (e.g., Bitburg) should only be mentioned if it is absolutely necessary. Other contributions cover issues such as stereotypes and mutual perceptions (e.g., "German images of the United States,""American Images of Germany," "Anti-Americanism," etc.). The main thrust of the essay should be institutional and not topical.
Appropriate topics would include (but are not limited to) the following: Who reported when from where (names of the most important correspondents)? Which newspapers and TV stations have correspondents in Germany and the United States respectively? What is the "Selbstverstaendnis" of the correspondents? What is there image at home? Which role do they play? What is the relative importance of the bureaus in Bonn, Berlin, Washington, and New York city (compared to other foreign bureaus and domestic correspondents)? What are the work conditions? How is news "made" (technology, interviews, copying from TV, etc.)? Is there any interaction with colleagues in the host country, and what is the importance of such interaction? What is the interaction with politicians, the elite, and the population of the host country? What is the overall importance of foreign correspondents for German-American relations?
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