''Nuclear Times'' was a magazine devoted to

nuclear disarmament Nuclear disarmament is the act of reducing or eliminating nuclear weapons. Its end state can also be a nuclear-weapons-free world, in which nuclear weapons are completely eliminated. The term ''denuclearization'' is also used to describe the pro ...

that was published from 1982 to 1992. "Devoted to education between and communication among peace activists," contributors to the magazine included "journalists, scholars, and activists." The magazine was noted for its practice of listing "organizational resources keyed to each issue's articles." ''Nuclear Times'' was characterized by ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' as "the

peace movement A peace movement is a social movement which seeks to achieve ideals such as the ending of a particular war (or wars) or minimizing inter-human violence in a particular place or situation. They are often linked to the goal of achieving world pe ...

's most popular magazine." The magazine is not related to a later e-newsletter published by the

United Steelworkers The United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union, commonly known as the United Steelworkers (USW), is a general trade union with members across North America. Headqua ...

to "share the latest news and information for atomic workers in the United States and Canada."

Publication history

Launch

''Nuclear Times'' was launched in October 1982, with

Greg Mitchell Greg Mitchell (born 1947) is an American author and journalist. He has written twelve non-fiction books on United States politics and history of the 20th and 21st centuries. He has also written and directed three film documentaries. The featur ...

serving as the publication's first editor. Set up as a

nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

, members of the magazine's board of directors included

Hodding Carter III William Hodding Carter III (April 7, 1935 – May 11, 2023) was an American journalist and politician who served as Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs under President Jimmy Carter. He frequently appeared on the news and provided upd ...

Adam Hochschild Adam Hochschild ( ; born October 5, 1942) is an American author, journalist, historian and lecturer. His best-known works include ''King Leopold's Ghost'' (1998), ''To End All Wars: A Story of Loyalty and Rebellion, 1914–1918'' (2011), '' Bur ...

, Anne Mollegen Smith, and

Thomas Powers Thomas Powers (born December 12, 1940, in New York City) is an American author and intelligence expert. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting in 1971 together with Lucinda Franks for his articles on Weatherman member Diana ...

. In a

United Press International United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ce ...

article about the magazine's launch, ''Nuclear Times'' claimed to be "the first of its kind, devoted exclusively to reporting on the grass-roots disarmament movement." It said it would "provide both in-depth and independent coverage of the personalities, events, and issues comprising the growing anti-nuclear weapons movement." The magazine's first issue "include /nowiki>d/nowiki> a report on the status of

nuclear freeze The Nuclear Freeze campaign was a mass movement in the United States during the 1980s to secure an agreement between the U.S. and Soviet governments to halt the testing, production, and deployment of nuclear weapons. Background The idea of simpl ...

referendums, an opinion column, an essay on 'Bringing the Bomb Home', and a calendar of upcoming anti-nuclear activities throughout the country." ''Nuclear Times'' was supported by subscribers, advertising, and foundation support; "it received a total of $74,300 /nowiki>in foundation support/nowiki> in 1984," with the largest contribution coming from the Field Foundation of New York.

Closure

The magazine suspended publication in August 1989, essentially put out of business by the peace movement's own success — the relaxing of tensions in the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

Relaunch and demise

The magazine was revived by a new,

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

-based, publisher in 1990, with

John Tirman John Tirman (December 13, 1949 – August 19, 2022) was an American political theorist and scholar. He was executive director and principal research scientist at the MIT Center for International Studies at the time of his death. There he led ...

at the head. In a 1991 round-up, author Grant Burns described how the magazine had... The relaunched ''Nuclear Times'' lasted two years before permanently ceasing publication in 1992.

''Between Fear and Hope''

''Nuclear Times'' managing editor Sonia Shah edited ''Between Fear and Hope: A Decade of Peace Activism Compiled from Nuclear Times Magazine, 1982 to Present'', published by Fortkamp Publishing Company in January 1992. In a review, the ''

Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists The ''Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists'' is a nonprofit organization concerning science and global security issues resulting from accelerating technological advances that have negative consequences for humanity. The ''Bulletin'' publishes conte ...

'' wrote, "The book ... is very useful for students of social movement strategy and communication, and it is a handy, accessible resource for organizers working for common security. ''Between Fear & Hope'' advances our knowledge of one of the largest and most important social movements in recent U.S. history."

Notable staff

David Corn David Corn (born February 20, 1959) is an American political journalist and author. He is the Washington, D.C. bureau chief for '' Mother Jones'' and is best known as a cable television commentator. Corn worked at ''The Nation'' from 1987 to 200 ...

, associate editor/senior editor/contributing editor (1982– 1987) * Sonia Shah, managing editor (1990–1992)

References

{{reflist

External links

''Nuclear Times'' issue of July/August 1987
Anti-nuclear movement Modern liberal magazines published in the United States Monthly magazines published in the United States Magazines established in 1982 Magazines disestablished in 1992 Magazines published in Boston Magazines published in New York City Magazines published in Washington, D.C.