1968 and the Tet Offensive Conference Agenda

April 26-28, 2018

Thursday, April 26

All day: Participants arrive in Lubbock

12-6:00 PM: Registration Desk opens at the MCM Elegante Hotel

Location: Conference Registration Area near Conference Rooms Registration Desk

6:00 PM: Welcoming Reception

Location: ATRIUM (near pool) Cash Bar with Heavy Hors d'oeuvres

Friday, April 27

7:30 AM: Coffee Service in Conference Area

7:30 AM - 5 PM: Registration Desk opens at MCM Elegante Hotel

Location: Conference Registration Area

8:00 AM: WELCOMING REMARKS

Ron Milam, Ph.D., Executive Director, Institute for Peace and Conflict, Texas Tech University

Administrative Remarks

Stephen Maxner, Ph.D., Director, Vietnam Center and Archive, Institute for Peace and Conflict, Texas Tech University

Location: Petroleum Room

8:15 AM: SESSION 1

Plenary Session: The Tet Offensive in Historical Perspective

Moderator: Ron Milam, Ph.D., Executive Director, Institute for Peace and Conflict, Texas Tech University

Commentator: Erik Villard, Ph.D., Digital Historian, US Army Center for Military History

Panel Speakers:

Bill Allison, Ph.D., Georgia Southern University Howard Jones, Ph.D., University of Alabama Edwin Moise, Ph.D., Clemson University

Location: Petroleum Room

9:45 AM: COFFEE BREAK

(Beginning of breakout sessions) 10:15 AM: SESSION 2

Session 2A

The Search for Peace in the Midst of War

Commentator/Moderator: Toby Rider, Ph.D., Texas Tech University

Peace Worker Faces Tet and My Lai in Quang Ngai

Earl Martin, Independent Researcher

Mennonite Missionary Family Experiences During the Tet Offensive

Donald Sensenig, Independent Researcher

Pilots and Protestors: How Vietnam Protests and the Air War in Vietnam Influenced Each Other

Joseph (Matt) Dietz, LTC, US Air Force/University of North Texas

Location: Cotton Room

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Session 2B

Media Coverage of the Vietnam War in 1968 Commentator/Moderator: Stephen Sherman, Independent Researcher, Vietnam Veteran A Discussion with Robert Elegant, Dan Southerland, and Robert Turner

Co-sponsored by the Center for National Security Law, University of Virginia School of Law

Location: University Room

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Session 2C

International Perspectives on 1968

Commentator/Moderator: Justin Hart, Ph.D., Department of History/Institute for Peace and Conflict, Texas Tech University

Symmetry and Asymmetry in International Peace Efforts During the Vietnam War

Paul Bjerk Ph.D. Texas Tech University (Presented by Justin Hart)

1968: The Turning Point of South Korea???s Conduct of the Vietnam War

Hosub Shim, MAJ, Army of the Republic of Korea/University of Kansas

Britain in Vietnam

Philip Webster, Texas Tech University Location: Petroleum Room

11:45: BREAK FOR LUNCH ??? PLEASE VACATE PETROLEUM ROOM FOR LUNCH SETUP

12:00 LUNCH

Sponsored by the Department of History, Texas Tech University

Welcoming Remarks: Laura Calkins, Ph.D., Texas Tech University

Introduction: Sean Cunningham, Ph.D., Chair, Department of History, Texas Tech University

Lunch Presentation

Kyle Longley, Ph.D., Arizona State University

Location: Petroleum Room

1:30 PM: SESSION 3

Session 3A

Memory and Memorialization

Commentator/Moderator: Steven Trout, Ph.D., University of South Alabama

Danger in Romance: Bowden???s Hue 1968 & Ken Burns??? Vietnam War Narratives of the Tet Offensive

Erin McCoy, Ph.D., University of South Carolina (Beaufort)

From Vietnam to Rio Cosumnes Correctional Center, and the Enduring Legacy of the Vietnam War

Alfredo Aguilar, Ph.D. Candidate, Texas Tech University

???Our delegation found itself in a rather difficult situation...??? Tet Offensive in Polish Literature, Memoirs and Secret Documents

Jarema Slowiak, Ph.D. Candidate, Jagiellonian University, Poland

Location: Cotton Room

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Session 3B

The Images and Geography of War

Commentator/Moderator: David Perlmutter, Ph.D., Dean of Mass Communications, Texas Tech University

One Soldier???s Heart: The Emotional Wounds of War

Ted Engelmann, Independent Researcher, Vietnam Veteran

Why were the Soil Tunnels of Cu Chi and Iron Triangle in Vietnam so Resilient?

Kenneth Olson, Ph.D., University of Illinois

Location: University Room

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Session 3C

Tet, the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, and Their Allies

Commentator/Moderator: Hai Nguyen, Ph.D., Texas Tech University

The Vietnam Workers Party???s Strategic Re-evaluation of Military Strategy in the Aftermath of the T???t Offensive of 1968

Marc Gilbert, Ph.D., Hawaii Pacific University

???1968 and the Tet Offensive???

Ha Dong, University of North Texas

Beyond Socialist Allies: How Democratic Republic of Vietnam Inspired Anti-war Movements in Western Countries

Vu Thi Phung, Associate Professor, College of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi

Pham Thi Hong Ha, Ph.D., Institute of History, Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences

Location: Petroleum Room

3:00 PM: COFFEE BREAK

3:30 PM: SESSION 4

Session 4A

Veteran Perspectives

Commentator/Moderator: Julie Willett, Ph.D., Texas Tech University

My Story Vietnam (Nurse)

Joan Boyd, Independent Researcher, Vietnam Veteran

The Forgotten Soldiers

Larry Cole, Independent Researcher, Vietnam Veteran

Shook Over Hell: The American Death-Trip Telethon of 1968

Robert Anderson, Independent Researcher (Presented by Justin Hart)

Location: Cotton Room

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Session 4B

Tet, Public Opinion, and the Election of 1968

Commentator/Moderator: Bill Allison, Ph.D., Georgia Southern University

Failures to Communicate

Edwin Moise, Ph.D., Clemson University

???Recasting Expatriate Political Fortunes: Transatlantic Americans and the 1968 U.S. Presidential Election"

Joshua Cochran, Ph.D., Michigan State University

There is No Substitute for Victory: Public Opinion, Limited War, and the Tet Offensive

Glenn Robins, Ph.D., Georgia Southwestern State University Location: University Room

5:00 PM ??? End of first day presentations

5:45 PM: Reception

Cash bar with Heavy Hors d'oeuvres Location: ATRIUM

6:30 PM: Atrium Bar Closed

Please join us in the Petroleum Room

6:30 PM: Vietnam Veteran Recognition Program Scholarship Award Ceremony

Hosted by The Vietnam Center and Sam Johnson Vietnam Archive & Institute for Peace and Conflict at Texas Tech University

& Texas Aviation Heritage Foundation, Incorporated

CONFERENCE BANQUET

Recommended attire: Business Location: Petroleum Room

Opening Remarks: Stephen Maxner, Ph.D., Director, Vietnam Center and Archive, Institute for Peace and Conflict, Texas Tech University

Welcoming Remarks: Brent Lindquist, Ph.D., Dean, College of Arts and Sciences, Texas Tech University

Introduction of Keynote Speaker: Ron Milam, Ph.D., Executive Director, Institute for Peace and Conflict, Texas Tech University

Keynote Speaker:

James Willbanks, Ph.D.

8:30 PM: End of banquet

Saturday April 28

7:30 AM: Coffee Service in Conference Area

8 AM-5 PM: Registration Desk opens

Location: Conference Registration Area

8:00 AM: SESSION 5

Session 5A

The Battle for Hue and the Hue Massacre

Commentator/Moderator: Martin Clemis, Ph.D., Valley Forge Military College

???Challenges of Urban Operations: U.S. Marines in Hue City.???

William Taylor, Ph.D., Angelo State University

The Massacre at Hue City: Vietcong Coercion as an Insurgency Strategy

Cody Billock, San Diego State University

Hue: A TV News Challenge

Don North, Vietnam War News Correspondent, ABC News

Location: Cotton Room

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Session 5B

Eyewitness Accounts

Commentator/Moderator: Joel Frary, Ph.D. Candidate, Texas Tech University

NLF/Biet Dong Narratives & Saigon Tet Attacks

Mike Dedrick, Interrogator/Intelligence Analyst, Combined Military Interrogation Center (CMIC), Saigon, 1968

Tet Action in the Deep Delta: The View of an ARVN Infantry Battalion Advisor, July 1967-April 1968

Kenneth Moorefield, Ambassador, Vietnam Veteran

T???t M??u Th??n in Ban Me Thu???t: Eyewitness Accounts

Neil Olsen, Ph.D., Fort Douglas Military Museum Location: University Room

9:30 AM: COFFEE BREAK

10:00 AM: SESSION 6

Session 6A

U.S. Military Operations

Commentator/Moderator: William Taylor, Ph.D., Angelo State University

Ambiguities of Control: Rural Pacification and Population Security in the Wake of Tet Mau Than

Martin Clemis, Ph.D., Valley Forge Military College

A New Look at Zumwalt???s SEALORDS Campaign: Was it a Success or a Failure?

Edward J. Marolda, Ph.D., U.S. Naval Institute

1968 Prize Crew OPEVAL in Vietnam

Dale Stith, Tet Participant, Independent Researcher Location: Cotton Room

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Session 6B

The Culture of War: Managing Military-Civilian Tensions

Commentator/Moderator: Amber Batura, Ph.D. Candidate, Texas Tech University

Songs for the Corpses: Music and Censorship in Vietnam 1968

Chi Ha, Texas Tech University

???Jumping Halfway: Civil Military Tensions, Mid-War Decision-Making, and De- escalating for a Post-Tet Victory in Vietnam???

Theo Milonopoulos, Columbia University

Location: University Room

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Session 6C

The Cauldron of 1968

Commentator/Moderator: Dave Lewis, Colonel, USAF (Retired), Texas Tech University

A Walk With the Martyrs: The Da Mai Ravine Massacre of 5-6 February 1968

Kyle Horst, Independent Researcher

Understanding the Marine Corps??? Position on Khe Sanh Fifty Years Later

LtCol Edward T. Nevgloski, USMC (ret), Edwin N. McClellan Research Fellow, Marine Corps History Division, Marine Corps University, and PhD Candidate at King's College, London

Out of the Wilderness: The CIA and Policy Formation After the Tet Offensive

Thomas Reinstein, Temple University Location: Petroleum Room

11:30: BREAK FOR LUNCH ??? PLEASE VACATE PETROLEUM ROOM FOR LUNCH SETUP

11:45 LUNCH

Welcoming Remarks: Justin Hart, Ph.D., Senior Fellow, Academic Programs, Institute for Peace and Conflict, Texas Tech University

Lunch Presentation

Marc Gilbert, Ph.D., Hawaii Pacific University

Location: Petroleum Room

1:15 PM: SESSION 7

Session 7A

Questioning Established Narratives

Commentator/Moderator: Randy McBee, Ph.D., Texas Tech University

Television Coverage Ruined the Tet Offensive Outcome

Mack Payne, Independent Researcher, Vietnam Veteran

Massacre in Hue

Paul Schmehl, Independent Researcher, Vietnam Veteran

Mis-Remembering History ??? An Analysis of Burns/Novick/PBS Episode 6. Things Fall Apart (January 1968-July 1968)

Stephen Sherman, Independent Researcher, Vietnam Veteran

Location: Cotton Room

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Session 7B

The Psychological Impact of the Tet Offensive

Commentator/Moderator: Justin Simundson, Ph.D., Texas Tech University

???The Demise of Effective Propaganda Against North Vietnam???

Mervyn Roberts Ph.D. Central Texas College

Tet 1968: The Making of a ???Psychological??? Victory

Keith Saliba Ph.D. Jacksonville University

???To Save the City: Peter Arnett, 1968, & America???s Failing in Vietnam???

James Sandy Ph.D. University of Texas, Arlington Location: University Room

2:45 PM: COFFEE BREAK

3:15 PM: SESSION 8

Session 8A

Rethinking the Tet Offensive: Hanoi???s Long-Term Victory in South Vietnam???s Provinces

Moderator: Erik Villard, Ph.D., Digital Historian, US Army Center for Military History Commentator: Edwin Moise, Ph.D., Clemson University

General Offensive-General Uprising: Tet 1968 in Binh Dinh

Kevin M. Boylan, Ph.D., Emmanuel College, Boston MA

???On Paper, Success Would Seem To Be Assured???: the 1968 Tet Offensive in Phuoc Tuy Province

Thomas Richardson, Ph.D., University of New South Wales, Canberra, Australia

Undoing Pacification: Tet 1968 in Phu Yen

Robert J. Thompson, Ph.D., Independent Scholar

Location: Cotton Room

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Session 8B

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial at Angel Fire, New Mexico Commentator/Moderator: Steven Trout, Ph.D., University of South Alabama A Conversation Featuring:

Walter Westphall, Co-Founder, Vietnam Veterans Memorial at Angel Fire

Ron Milam, Ph.D., Executive Director, Institute for Peace and Conflict, Texas Tech University

Carie Nguyen, Ph.D. Candidate, Texas Tech University

Location: University Room

4:45 PM: Closing Remarks

Stephen Maxner, Ph.D., Director, Vietnam Center and Archive, Institute for Peace and Conflict, Texas Tech University

Location: Cotton Room

5:00 PM: END OF CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS

6:00 PM: DINNER

Location: Petroleum Room