Beyond the Nixon Shocks: Global Consequences and Transformation Since 1971

In 1971 President Nixon shocked the world with a series of announcements and policies that changed the political landscape at home, and shifted the bases of international power abroad.

From newly opened diplomatic channels with China to unilateral monetary and trade reforms, this book argues that the so called ’Nixon Shocks’ transformed not only America but the international economic, security, political and cultural arenas.

Zeiler shows how, along with events such as the release of the Pentagon papers and oil crises, the United States’ foreign and domestic policies of the 1970s indicated the coming of a new world order. Providing a snapshot of these key moments, as the Cold War waned and new powers rose, Beyond the Nixon Shockshighlights America’s role in this era of globalization, tumult and uncertainty, and explores how they were received on the global stage. This book helps us to understand not only the impact of the global 1970s on world affairs, but how events and policies made half a century ago have shaped our modern age.

Thomas W. Zeiler is Professor of History and Director of the Program in International Affairs at the University of Colorado Boulder, USA. He specializes in American history, focused on diplomacy and economics, globalization, baseball and sports, and World War II. He published Capitalist Peace: A History of American Free Trade Internationalism in 2022. Tom has served as the editor of the journal of record of his field, Diplomatic History, served as President of the Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations (SHAFR), as a member of the Department of State’s Historical Advisory Committee, and has lectured widely abroad, including holding Fulbright fellowships in Argentina, Japan, and France.