As part of its Initiative on Cultural Power in International Relations, the European Institute announces the Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) Research Project Fellowships.
Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty served as a key part of the American cultural strategy to win the “hearts and minds” of people during the Cold War. Engaging hundreds of exiles to report on events taking place behind the Iron Curtain, RFE/RL reached millions of listeners throughout Eastern, Central Europe, and Russia with news about political uprisings, party coups, environmental disasters, as well as everyday life. The RFE/RL Research Project focuses on the history of Radio Free Europe, and Radio Liberty, and may also include other projects during the Cold War related to cultural diplomacy.
The European Institute’s RFE/RL Research Project will offer up to six Columbia students the opportunity to conduct original archival research on the history of culture and the Cold War. Those interested in public diplomacy, journalistic history, the Cold War, and the evolution of modern Europe will find abundant resources for productive investigations at archives they will visit with the group.
Fellows work as a unit when in the archives and are expected to demonstrate both independent thought and scholarly collaboration. The goal of the project is for fellows to present their research at a conference at Columbia in Spring 2018, and publish peer-reviewed scholarly journal articles.
The deadline to apply is October 21st, 2016.