Current History

Current History
Title	Current History
Discipline	International relations, contemporary history, area studies
Abbreviation	Curr. Hist.
Publisher	University of Pennsylvania Press
Country	United States
History	1914–present
Frequency	Monthly
Issn	0011-3530

Current History

Current History is a century-old periodical dedicated to the analysis of contemporary international events, crises, and trends. Founded in 1914, it has published reportage, commentary, and scholarship on subjects ranging from the First World War and Russian Revolution to the Cold War, decolonization, European Union, Soviet Union dissolution, 9/11 attacks, Iraq War (2003–2011), and recent developments in Ukraine and China. Contributors have included diplomats, scholars, and journalists who wrote about the League of Nations, United Nations, NATO, Warsaw Pact, African Union, and other major institutions.

Definition and Scope

Current History defines itself as a forum for contemporaneous analysis of international events affecting states such as United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Russia, China, India, Japan, Brazil, and regions like Middle East, South Asia, Latin America, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Southeast Asia. Its scope covers diplomatic episodes such as the Treaty of Versailles, Yalta Conference, Camp David Accords, and Paris Climate Agreement negotiations, as well as conflicts like the Korean War, Vietnam War, Falklands War, Gulf War (1990–1991), Syrian Civil War, and the Russo-Ukrainian War. The journal bridges reporting on summits including the G7, G20, BRICS, and policy forums like World Economic Forum and COP26.

Historical Development

Founded during the opening year of the First World War, Current History chronicled the collapse of empires such as the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Ottoman Empire and the rise of new states like Poland and Czechoslovakia. Between the wars it covered the Weimar Republic, Benito Mussolini, Adolf Hitler, and the Spanish conflict culminating in the Spanish Civil War. During the Second World War it featured dispatches on the Battle of Britain, Pearl Harbor attack, and the Eastern Front. In the Cold War era it published analyses on the Truman Doctrine, Marshall Plan, Berlin Airlift, the Cuban Missile Crisis, Vietnamese Revolution, and détente leading to events such as the Helsinki Accords. Post-Cold War issues examined the Gulf War (1990–1991), the breakup of the Yugoslavia with coverage of the Siege of Sarajevo and Dayton Agreement, and the expansion of European Union and NATO. In the 21st century it has focused on globalization, the Financial crisis of 2007–2008, the Arab Spring, the Taliban (1996–2001; 2021–present), and technological disruptions tied to firms like Google, Facebook, and Amazon.

Methods and Sources

Current History combines first-person reportage, archival research citing collections such as the National Archives (United States), British Library, Russian State Archive, and diplomatic records from the Foreign Office (United Kingdom), U.S. Department of State, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs (China). Its contributors use interviews with figures like Henry Kissinger, Margaret Thatcher, Mikhail Gorbachev, Nelson Mandela, and Angela Merkel, and analyze primary sources including treaties like the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, protocols from the Treaty of Maastricht, and court documents from tribunals such as the International Criminal Court and International Court of Justice. The journal integrates quantitative indicators from institutions such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, United Nations Development Programme, and electoral data from national bodies like the Federal Election Commission and Election Commission of India.

Topics and Themes

Recurring themes include great-power competition among United States and Russia and China; processes of decolonization in India, Algeria, and Ghana; state-building in post-conflict settings like Iraq and Afghanistan; migration linked to crises in Syria, Venezuela, and South Sudan; and trade disputes exemplified by events involving the World Trade Organization and tariff rows between United States and China. It addresses human-rights crises spotlighting reports on Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and cases such as the Rwandan Genocide and the Srebrenica massacre. It covers environmental diplomacy at summits like Kyoto Protocol and Paris Agreement and security topics involving cybersecurity incidents attributed to actors like Fancy Bear and policy frameworks by North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Debates and Criticism

Scholarly debates in the journal reflect divergent interpretations of events such as the causes of the Iraq War (2003–2011), assessments of counterinsurgency campaigns in Afghanistan, and the role of economic sanctions against countries like Iran and North Korea. Critics have contested editorial stances during eras such as the interwar period and the Cold War, comparing coverage with outlets like Foreign Affairs, The Economist, New York Times, and academic journals including Journal of Contemporary History and International Security. Methodological critiques invoke historiographical disputes tied to scholars like E. H. Carr, A. J. P. Taylor, Eric Hobsbawm, and Tony Judt on narrative framing, source selection, and the balance between journalism and scholarship.

Influence on Policy and Public Discourse

Current History has informed policymakers and publics, with articles cited in debates in national legislatures such as the United States Congress, the House of Commons (United Kingdom), and international bodies like the United Nations General Assembly. Its analyses have entered policy discussions around interventions in Bosnia and Herzegovina, reconstruction in Iraq, sanctions on Russia after the Crimean crisis, and strategies toward China’s rise discussed in Pentagon briefings and State Department memos. The journal’s essays have been referenced in think tanks including the Council on Foreign Relations, Brookings Institution, Chatham House, and Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Key Figures and Institutions

Key editors and contributors have included intellectuals and practitioners who engaged with events involving Woodrow Wilson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, Joseph Stalin, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden. Institutions associated with the journal’s production and dissemination include the University of Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Historical Association, and publishing networks tied to academic presses and media outlets such as Columbia University Press and Oxford University Press. Prominent contributors and commentators spanning diplomacy, academia, and journalism have linked the journal to broader debates with figures like Samuel P. Huntington, Francis Fukuyama, Noam Chomsky, Robert Kagan, Samantha Power, and Fareed Zakaria.

Category:Academic journals