Do the media have the power to alter arms control negotiations? Despite abundant television and newspaper coverage of arms control talks, its impact has drawn little scholarly attention. This innovative study, which combines quantitative analysis of newspaper articles and television reports with interviews with leading journalists and officials, confirms that the media have the power to influence both the making of policy and the policy agenda. In 1981, President Reagan unveiled a plan to eliminate US and Soviet intermediate-range nuclear forces (INF) in Europe. For six years, initiative shifted from one side to the other and the promise of success veered from near-fulfillment to abandonment. The INF Treaty was finally signed by President Reagan and Secretary Gorbachov in 1987. This case study focuses on the role of the press in the arms control process and in US foreign policymaking.