For people of my generation who grew up in the 1960s the war in Vietnam was, along with the Civil Rights Movement, the biggest ongoing news story of our youth. A substantial portion of popular culture, music, literature, movies etc, developed in reaction to these events. Much has been made of the role of TV media in influencing public opinion during the war, ultimately turning the majority of Americans against it. The war has been called the first living room war.
Less has been made of the role of the print media in leading the country into the war. No entity was more prominent in that role than Henry Luce’s Time and Life magazines. By 1950 nearly half of all college educated men in America regularly read these magazines, a number which grew throughout the 50s and 60s before ultimately fading in the late 60s under competition from television. Luce was immensely influential in political circles.
Photos from my collection of Life magazines, and others, that featured stories about the Vietnam War. Shared here in chronological order, along with some historical background for context. They are interesting artifacts of the time period. The ads are memory inducing too.
Life December 29, 1947 – Introduction of Ho Chi Minh
Life January 22, 1951 – General Jean de Lattre Enters
Parallel Narratives 