A New Historiographical Contribution to the International Debate

1.- Propaganda

1.1. Short-term objectives

1.2. Instruments: media, conferences, exhibitions, etc.

2.- Cultural Relations

2.1. Long-term objectives

2.2. Instruments identified as “high culture”: technical assistance programs,

educational and scientific exchanges (e. g., Fulbright program), promoting the
history and language of that country in foreign universities, etc.
“As long as he strolls with his smiling countenance so innocently about the
streets of our country, as long as Donald is power and our collective
representative, the bourgeoisie and imperialism can sleep in peace”

Dorfman, A. and Mattelart, A.: How to Read Donald Duck, New York, I. G. Editions, 1991 [1971], p. 99.
“The history of America´s relations with Europe in
the twentieth century suggests that the United States
could not easily export its culture across the Atlantic.
Europeans in each country were (and are) selective in
what they accept from America. And they have been
successful in preserving their distinctive cultural
characteristics despite the efforts of Washington to
persuade them to embrace the American model”

PELLS, R.: Not Like Us, New York, Basic Books, 1997, pp. 333-334.
“The American model was a kind of mirror in
which the French viewed themselves or, perhaps,
before which they preened. By inventing an
America that reeked of materialism and vulgarity,
wallowed in conformity and naive optimism, the
French separated themselves from the New
World, asserted their superiority, and defined
Gallic identity and virtue”

KUISEL, R.; Seducing the French, Berkeley, University of

California Press, p. 235.
Eisenhower and Nixon: Theirs visits to Franco’s Spain (1959, 1970)
 The reception of foreign studies

 New cultural and academic interactions between Spain and the United
States

 The presence of a strong animosity towards American power in Spanish

society
“The proper object of historical investigation should be the particular, not the general”.- Richard Kuisel
 Diplomatic relations and propaganda The links between scientific and intellectual sectors of both countries
over the first decades of the twentieth century through institutions such as the Hispanic Society
or the Council for the Extension of Studies
(“Junta para la Ampliación de Estudios”)
 The Spanish historiography is providing a heterogeneous view on
relations between the two countries

 There remain a number of limitations that should be overcome:

1. The study of other important processes of cultural transmission

2. The need to expand the time frame in future researches

3. Consideration given to the assessments made by Spanish receptors

E-mail: davidcorrales@ucm.es