Cold War Pop Culture and the Image of U.S. Foreign Policy: The Perspective of the Original Star Trek Series

Abstract

Star Trek has been a major American cultural phenomenon. In the 1960s, when the original series was in production, the producers, directors, and writers attempted to use it as a forum to comment on a number of political issues. They intentionally designed some episodes to critique U.S. foreign policy in the belief that the United States should seek to foster democracy and refrain from using force that would undermine the country's positive role in international affairs.In part, then, Star Trek was a running effort to reshape the foreign policies of the United States.