Date

12-16-2025

Department

School of Communication and the Arts

Degree

Master of Arts in Professional Communication (MA)

Chair

John Dunkle

Keywords

close textual analysis (CTA), social judgment theory (SJT), centers of gravity (COGs), psychological operation (PSYOP), rhetorical analysis

Disciplines

Communication | History

Abstract

The Cold War redefined warfare around information, ideology, and perception. Victory depended less on territory and more on legitimacy. In 1983, Cold War tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union were extremely high. President Ronald Reagan’s “Evil Empire” speech emerged at a critical juncture, marking a pivotal moment when U.S. foreign policy embraced assertive ideological confrontation. The rhetoric of this speech did more than address the American public; it served as a strategic instrument aimed at weakening Soviet ideological cohesion. It became a turning point in U.S. Cold War rhetoric, targeting both the Soviet leadership and its oppressed citizens. In this study, a close textual analysis was performed on Reagan’s “Evil Empire” speech artifact, revealing the role of the “Evil Empire” rhetoric in delegitimizing Soviet authority and undermining Soviet morale. Through the lenses of social judgment theory and centers of gravity (COG), the findings of this study validate the assertion that Reagan’s “Evil Empire” rhetoric functioned as an intentionally designed and employed strategic non-kinetic weapon and further validate the potential for intentional design and employment of rhetorical psychological operation (PSYOP) strikes against targeted enemy COGs, in particular ideological, political, and leadership COGs.

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