Illinois State University ISU ReD: Research and eData Theses and Dissertations 3-16-2021 “Natural Ties For Patriotic Purposes": The Committee On Public Information, Americanization, And Swedish-American Transnationalism Race L. Fisher Illinois State University,
[email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/etd Part of the European Languages and Societies Commons, and the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Fisher, Race L., "“Natural Ties For Patriotic Purposes": The Committee On Public Information, Americanization, And Swedish-American Transnationalism" (2021). Theses and Dissertations. 1367. https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/etd/1367 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by ISU ReD: Research and eData. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ISU ReD: Research and eData. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. “NATURAL TIES FOR PATRIOTIC PURPOSES”: THE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC INFORMATION, AMERICANIZATION, AND SWEDISH-AMERICAN TRANSNATIONALISM RACE L. FISHER 151 Pages The Committee on Public Information (CPI) was the official propaganda agency of the United States during the First World War, seeking to homogenize American public opinion and spread American ideals across the globe. Through a case study of Edwin Björkman’s work among Swedish Americans, this thesis illuminates how the CPI approached its work among immigrants, engaging questions of Americanization and transnationalism. Through an analysis of the John Ericsson League of Patriotic Service and the Scandinavian Bureau—both its domestic and foreign operations—this thesis argues that Edwin Björkman and the CPI promoted cultural pluralism rather than assimilation to a dominant Anglo-American culture.