by David Craig
First published 2023
David Craig opens his account in the ABC programming offices where executives wrestle with a television movie that will show Soviet missiles destroying Lawrence, Kansas. The Day After promises to bring nuclear apocalypse into American living rooms, but first it must survive corporate boardrooms, White House interference, and cultural warfare. Network battles rage between filmmakers and broadcast standards. The director faces career suicide after being pushed aside, then plots his return through media manipulation. Meanwhile, Reagan administration officials launch their own propaganda campaign to control the film's anti-war message. Conservative groups mobilize against what they see as Nuclear Freeze movement propaganda. On set in Kansas, cast members suffer nightmares from the apocalyptic scenes they're filming. Craig traces how a television movie became the center of America's nuclear debate, drawing over 100 million viewers and triggering the largest cultural battle in media history. The book reveals the hidden war fought over a fictional war.
Genres: politics, apocalyptic
Vibes: suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: media-manipulation, political-intrigue
Setting: ABC, Kansas, Lawrence, Soviet Union
Period: 20th-century
272 pages · Hardcover · Applause