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History is not dull; it has the power to validate our understanding of the world around us by framing our interpretation of the past. The current battle over this power is revealing significant distortions of truth, accuracy and, indeed, reality. The War for Reality engages students in case studies about how historical actors have attempted to control perception of reality, and how historians are required to challenge these attempts at warping the truth. From the War of the Worlds “hysteria” of 1938, to the political “de-racializing” of Dr. Martin Luther King today, to the resurgence of Holocaust Denial, this class will teach students the ideas, techniques and tactics historians employ to rec-construct the past, and the dangers of letting others claim that power for themselves.