Although the Vietnam War was situated in the sixties, a period defined by a surge of social and political movements for equality and justice, the war proved to be an especially tumultuous moment in this era. In particular, the war solidified widespread distrust in the American government because of the drastic discrepancies between political rhetoric and reality. The pervasive propaganda in the rhetoric of American politicians created an inaccurate portrayal of U.S. involvement in Vietnam, influencing the imaginations of the American public. Focusing on Presidents Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon, major politicians strategically used rhetorical flourishes in order to sustain violence in Southeast Asia. Although the Vietnam War was the first televised
