America's Sectarian War: Reactions to Maronite Narratives During the Lebanese Civil War

This paper explores the representation of the Lebanese Civil War in American media during the United States’ involvement in the war. Through interactions and interviews with prominent Maronite Christian leaders, the war was portrayed as a religious conflict between Lebanese Christians and Muslims in an attempt to garner American support for the Lebanese Forces, a conservative Christian group led by Bashir Gemayel. The paper examines the roots of the Lebanese sectarian system, the common political interests of the Lebanese Forces and the United States, and the implications this had for American foreign policy in the Middle East and the system of political representation in Lebanon.