A fresh account of the US presidential rhetoric embodied in Cold War international travel.
 
Crowds swarm when US presidents travel abroad, though many never hear their voices. The presidential body, moving from one secured location to another, communicates as much or more to these audiences than the texts of their speeches. In The World is Our Stage, Allison M. Prasch considers how presidential appearances overseas broadcast American superiority during the Cold War. Drawing on extensive archival research, Prasch examines five foundational moments in the development of what she calls the “global rhetorical presidency:” Truman at Potsdam, Eisenhower’s “Goodwill Tours,” Kennedy in West Berlin, Nixon in the People’s Republic of China, and Reagan in Normandy. In each case, Prasch reveals how the president’s physical presence defined the boundaries of the “Free World” and elevated the United States as the central actor in Cold War geopolitics.

"A first-rate piece of scholarship . . .  impressively researched and rich in detail and some of the nuggets that Prasch has unearthed are fascinating. She masterfully weaves the political and historical context that presidents dealt with into a compelling narrative that enriches our understanding of an important time in American and world history that continues to affect us today." - Congress and the Presidency

"An unparalleled examination of the Cold War presidency and its impact on global affairs." - Political Science Quarterly

"“Enjoyable and fresh in its approach . . . [The World is Our Stage is] a terrific and thought-provoking book that deserves to be on Cold War public diplomacy reading lists and in the hands of anyone trying to understand the symbolic and rhetorical aspects of US foreign policy past and present.”" - USC Center on Public Diplomacy