Why is NATO getting involved in pop culture and the film industry?
A few days ago, on 3 May, the British newspaper The Guardian reported that NATO, the military arm of Western imperialism, had held secret meetings with representatives of the film industry in Europe and the US. The meetings in Brussels, Los Angeles and Paris did not receive much attention amidst the intense political atmosphere in Turkey. According to the exclusive report, the fourth of these meetings will take place next month in London with screenwriters who are members of the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain (WGGB).
According to a NATO official speaking to The Guardian, as reported by news agencies, these events involve interaction between NATO representatives, civil society and think tanks. The initiative in London will also form part of a series of sessions organised for fiction writers in the entertainment sector.
THE MILITARISATION OF POP CULTURE
We are familiar with American imperialism’s use of pop culture, Hollywood, and the film industry. There are countless examples from the past of attempts to legitimise US imperialism through TV series, films and books. From Korea to Vietnam, and from Somalia to Afghanistan and Iraq, a distorted version of history—in which US interventions and aggression are whitewashed and the truth is turned on its head—has been sought to be ingrained in people’s memories. It is difficult to say they have ‘failed’ in this regard. American imperialism, which shapes popular culture, is highly skilled at selling the narrative it desires.
NEW DIRECTIONS OF IMPERIALISM
The use of a similar strategy this time through the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) relates to the role assigned to this “war organisation”. NATO, which until recently was described by the European wing of the transatlantic alliance as “brain dead” is now being given a new format by the US. This restoration will also be carried out through pop culture.
A Guardian report dated 3 May states that the meetings in Brussels, Los Angeles and Paris are part of an initiative to disseminate NATO’s messages through cinema and television. The award-winning Irish screenwriter Alan O’Gorman described the planned meeting as a “scandal”, stating: “There is currently an attempt to spread fear across Europe that our defence systems are weakening. I see this in the Irish context; here, certain media outlets and the government are exerting pressure to present NATO in a positive light and to align ourselves more closely with them.”
O’Gorman said that the other screenwriters invited to the meeting were “deeply disturbed by the prospect of art being used to support war” and felt they were being asked to “contribute to NATO propaganda”.
NATO’s strategists are seeking to forge stronger ties with the arts. In a report published earlier this year, the Centre for European Reform called on governments to collaborate with cultural leaders—including screenwriters and film producers—to boost public support for defence spending and to “better explain why these defence investments are necessary”.
NATO’s closed-door meetings with figures from the film and television sectors in America and Europe signal that the alliance will focus on producing propaganda through popular culture.
SCREENWRITERS, DIRECTORS AT NATO HEADQUARTERS
We learn from the report that NATO’s engagement with the entertainment sector is not new. In 2024, a group of eight screenwriters—including the writer and executive producer of the award-winning series Friends, a writer from the crime series Law & Order, and a figure involved in the production of High Potential—were hosted at NATO headquarters in Brussels by the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies.
The group, which was briefed on security policies, also met with then-NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg during the visit.
NATO ORCHESTRA AT SWING DANCE FESTIVAL
NATO has not only established links with the film and cinema industry. They have infiltrated everywhere from dance parties to youth festivals. For example, the NATO Jazz Orchestra was among the international music groups participating in a swing dance festival held in Brussels earlier this year. The fact that a military alliance like NATO is so visible in a civilian and cultural sphere was not merely an aesthetic or musical choice.
THE WAR ORGANISATION’S PR CAMPAIGN
As NATO, the armed wing of American-Western imperialism, prepares for new wars and interventions, it is in pursuit of ‘legitimacy’. To this end, efforts are being made to improve its public perception. Whilst this connection is being established through popular culture, the relationships forged with the film industry are of critical importance. Popular culture and cinema will be instrumentalised for the purpose of war propaganda.
THE TRICK OF POSITIONING ITSELF AS ‘SOFT POWER’
Whilst a fierce competition is taking place between power centres such as the US and China over how the global power architecture of the 21st century will take shape, the imperialist war organisation NATO is being assigned a vital role.
As attempts are made to impose a new format on the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), which celebrated its 77th anniversary on 4 April, the alliance’s next summit is to be held in Ankara. The summit, scheduled for 7–8 July at the Presidential Complex in Ankara, speaks volumes.
We must expose the fact that this military organisation is attempting to legitimise itself not merely as a military structure, but also through values, norms and cultural representations. Such attempts must not be allowed.
Note: This article is translated from the original article titled NATO neden popüler kültüre ve sinema endüstrisine el atar!, published in BirGün newspaper on May 16, 2026.
Kaynak: BirGün
