As colonial empires in Africa collapsed and more than 40 new states were established in the late 1950's and 1960's, intellectuals in America were suddenly faced with the challenge of investigating and interpreting the meaning of African nationalism and self-government. This book explores the different ways that American opinion makers from conservative, liberal Marxist, and African-American journals reacted to events in Africa during these years. Reviewing print media such as the "New York Times", "National Review", and "Ebony", and quoting writers as diverse as Steward Alsop, Immanuel Wallerstein, and Chester Bowles, Martin Staniland takes a look back at the assessments of Africa by the American intellectual media. This book illuminates how different ideological lenses can distort our view of cultures other than our own.