Life in the U.S. During the Cold War

Competition for the Third World With the US & USSR dividing the world into sides, they bought and fought for influence in the Third World- Winning Hearts and Minds. Both nations would use propaganda to convince countries that their way of life (Communism/Capitalism) was the better way of life. Some countries chose sides (NATO vs Warsaw Pact), and some remained neutral.

The USA created the United States Information Agency (USIA) to convince nations to join their side. They created films, books, pamphlets, and radio broadcasts. The U.S. would transmit 3 distinct radio frequencies into Soviet controlled Europe (Voice of America, Radio Free Europe, Radio Liberty) The Soviets attempted to jam the frequencies, and if that failed, they played white noise on the same frequency to make the broadcasts impossible to listen to.

Arms Race In 1949 President Eisenhower announced to the American public that, “an atomic explosion had occurred in the USSR.” Americans feared that the Soviets now also had an atomic bomb. Shortly thereafter, the Americans started work on a better weapon, a Hydrogen Bomb (H-Bomb) Instead of splitting an atom this bomb would fuse them. This bomb would prove move powerful than its atomic cousin.

Brinkmanship & MAD The threat of nuclear war was ever present in the 1950s. Brinkmanship, or the willingness to go to the brink of war, became a government policy in hopes to prevent nuclear war. New long-range nuclear weapons (Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles - ICBM’s) supported the creation of a nuclear arsenal so deadly the Soviets would never attack lest they guarantee Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD)

American reaction to possibility of nuclear war Many turned to religion. Some built bomb shelters. Air-raid drills conducted in schools and public places. Civil Defense education programs conducted. Arms race and space exploration supported.

Americans were anxious by the threat of nuclear war & built fallout shelters for protection Nuclear fallout docs: http://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/fallout-docs/

Interstate Highway System In response to the threat of a Soviet nuclear attack, Eisenhower pushed Congress to create the Interstate Highway System in 1956. 41,000 miles of divided highway to connect major U.S. cities. In addition to helping promote trade & travel, these highways were vital to evacuate cities during a nuclear attack.

Interstate Highway System

The Cold War at Home With the Great Depression – tens of thousands of Americans joined the Communist Party. After FDR’s Works Projects and WWII – most quit the Party.

The Red Scare Fears of Conspiracy China fell to the Communists in 1949. Were the Communists going to try to overthrow the American government?

The Loyalty Program Truman created in 1947 Background checks on all federal workers done by FBI. Anyone with “questionable” activities was accused of disloyalty.

The Loyalty Program Those accused were sent in front of the Loyalty Review Board. Violated rights of privacy and freedom to associate. Considered guilty until proven innocent.

The Loyalty Program Millions were investigated. A Few hundred were removed from jobs. Added to the climate of suspicion in the nation.

Alger Hiss Spy Case (1948) Alger Hiss- A State Department official accused of spying for communists. Whittaker Chambers, former communist spy, testifies that Hiss gave him government secrets. Hiss accused Chambers of slander. Chambers produced microfilmed government documents proving Hiss’s guilt. Hiss spends 5 years in jail.

The Rosenberg Case: (1951) Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were physicists who had access to nuclear technology secrets. U.S Court convicted the Rosenbergs of giving nuclear secrets to the Soviet Union. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed in June 1953.

HUAC House Un-American Activities Committee Congressional committee to find Communists. Focused more on Hollywood.

The HUAC committee investigated Hollywood, celebrities accused of having “radical” political ties. Those accused invoked their 5th amendment right against self-incrimination. Hollywood Ten This led to Hollywood blacklisting anyone who was associated with believed communist ideas.

McCarthyism February 9th, 1950 Senator Joseph McCarthy (WI) claimed, “I have here in my hand a list of 205… names that were known to… being members of the Communist party” that STILL work in the State Department. Translation: There are Soviet spies working in the US Government This caused a widespread panic which helped McCarthy rise to extreme importance in Congress.

Army-McCarthy hearings McCarthy would abuse his leadership powers and lead numerous witch-hunts looking for communists in the government, an idea that became known as McCarthyism. Army-McCarthy hearings At the height of McCarthy’s anti-communist crusade, he attacked the leaders of the U.S. Army. Army’s attorney Joseph Welch challenges McCarthy’s motives and methods. Thirty-five days of televised hearings produce no evidence. This was the beginning of the end of “McCarthyism.”

Despite his accusations, no one was ever proven to be a communist. By 1954 McCarthy was formally censured by the Senate and faded out of importance.

Sputnik & the Space Race In 1957, the Soviets sent Sputnik I, the first man-made space satellite, to orbit the earth. Americans feared there was a missile gap between the Soviet Union and the United States. The National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA) was formed in 1958 to catch up to the Soviets. National Defense Education Act was created to promote math, science, & technology education.

U-2 Spy Incident (1960) By late 1959, the U.S. and the Soviet Union were in the beginning stages of decreasing tension between the two countries. This progress halted when the Soviets claimed to have shot down a U.S. spy plane flying over Russian territory. The U-2 planes were designed with cameras that took infrared pictures of the Soviets’ military installations. The downing of Col. Francis Gary Power’s plane pushed back diplomatic diplomacy between the two nations.