This open access edited volume shines new light on the history of propaganda and persuasion during the Nordic welfare epoch. A common analytical framework is developed that highlights transnational and transmedial perspectives rather than national or monomedial histories. The return of propaganda in contemporary debate underlines the need to historically contextualize the role and function of persuasive communication activities in the Nordic region and beyond. Building on an empirically situated approach, the chapters in this volume break new ground by covering a range of themes, from cultural diplomacy and nation branding to media materiality and information infrastructures. In doing so, the book stresses that the Nordic welfare epoch, with its associated epithet the “Nordic Model”, was built not only on governance, social security and economic productivity, but also on propaganda and persuasion. Fredrik Norén is a Senior Research Assistant at Humlab – the digital humanities hub at Umeå University, Sweden – with a PhD in media and communication. He has published research related to media history, governmental information and computational text analysis. Emil Stjernholm is an Assistant Professor in media and communication studies at Lund University, Sweden. His areas of research include film and television history, propaganda studies and visual communication. C. Claire Thomson is Professor of Cinema History at UCL, UK. She is the author of Short Films from a Small Nation: Danish Informational Cinema 1935-65 (2018) and co-editor of A History of Danish Cinema (2021). Her current research focuses on film and public health and unrealised films.

“This rich and persuasive book argues that “the Nordic model” was forged not only through politics and economic policy, but also by media practices that sought to inform and persuade citizens at home and influence audiences abroad. Yet, as the book’s fascinating studies show, the Nordic region’s media histories cannot be understood in isolation. Moving beyond the typical focus on one country or one media form, this book explores transnational entanglements within and beyond the states of the Nordic region, as well as the entangled relations between film, radio, television, information policy, and cultural diplomacy programs. The result is a wide-ranging and methodologically innovative collection that offers fresh perspectives on the intersection between media, political power and global cultural relations in the twentieth century, in the Nordic region and beyond.” (Benjamin G. Martin, Senior Lecturer and Associate Professor in the Department of History of Science and Ideas, Uppsala University, Sweden)"This is a most valuable and much-needed book. Bringing together scholars with different approaches and disciplinary backgrounds, the volume provides a fresh understanding of propaganda and persuasion in the twentieth century. A crucial insight is how the region’s actors, practices and institutions were shaped by entanglement and circulation processes within, between and beyond the Scandinavian countries. The book will easily become a key reference in the scholarly conversation on modern Nordic history." (Johan Östling, Director of Lund Centre for the History of Knowledge (LUCK), Sweden) “This rich and accessible book makes a novel contribution to Media History by showing how propaganda and persuasion were key to constructing the Nordic Model. Using a theoretically inclusive and empirically situated approach, it examines a broad range of institutions and communications and illuminates the entanglement of things, ideas and actors across national borders during the Nordic welfare epoch. An essential read for scholars and students wanting to deepen their knowledge of propaganda in the welfare state.” (Mats Hyvönen, Professor in Media and Communications, Uppsala University, Sweden)“Nordic Media Histories of Propaganda and Persuasion is a highly readable and original contribution to the voluminous literature on Nordic politics and culture. Illuminating case histories demonstrate how individuals and organizations cooperated to create what has become known as the Nordic model, not primarily through policy formation but through communication, propaganda and persuasion. The book eloquently demonstrates why, how, when, and by whom the Nordic model brand was curated.” (Trine Syvertsen, Professor in Media and Communication, University of Oslo, Norway)

This book is open access, which means that you have free and unlimited access Explores how the Nordic welfare epoch was built not only on propaganda and persuasion Highlights transnational and transmedial perspectives rather than national or monomedial histories Covers a range of themes, from cultural diplomacy to information infrastructures

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