Public Opinion, Nuclear Weapon Use, and the Perils of Selective Reading

This Policy Brief is part of an academic exchange about a recent scholarly article by Smetana, Sukin, Herzog, and Vranka. Following Florian Eblenkamp’s critique of the article, Peace Research Center Prague presents a rejoinder by one of the original authors, Stephen Herzog.

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Open Access

Published: January 2026

Author
Stephen Herzog

A U.S. Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile is shown in its silo in 1989. In a nuclear crisis, this land-based missile system is among the forces that would be at the U.S. president’s disposal.

ABSTRACT

The author advances a policy brief in an exchange with an anti-nuclear weapons advocate regarding the academic merits and policy implications of his recent co-authored work. The discussion considers how public opinion and democratic debate can shape nuclear weapon use decisions, and what that means for concepts such as restraint and the nuclear taboo. It also reflects on the respective roles of scholars and activists in public discourse. Alongside questions of research design and interpretation, the policy brief comments on the need to maintain appropriate boundaries between analysis and advocacy.

Recommended citation

Herzog, Stephen. “Public Opinion, Nuclear Weapon Use, and the Perils of Selective Reading.” Peace Research Center Prague, Policy Brief, No. 030, January 2026.