Dark Days in the Newsroom: McCarthyism Aimed at the Press

by Edward Alwood

Overview

Dark Days in the Newsroom traces how journalists became radicalized during the Depression era, only to become targets of Senator Joseph McCarthy and like-minded anti-Communist crusaders during the 1950s. Edward Alwood, a former news correspondent describes this remarkable story of conflict, principle, and personal sacrifice with noticeable élan. He shows how McCarthy's minions pried inside newsrooms thought to be sacrosanct under the First Amendment, and details how journalists mounted a heroic defense of freedom of the press while others secretly enlisted in the government's anti-communist crusade.

Relying on previously undisclosed documents from FBI files, along with personal interviews, Alwood provides a richly informed commentary on one of the most significant moments in the history of American journalism. Arguing that the experiences of the McCarthy years profoundly influenced the practice of journalism, he shows how many of the issues faced by journalists in the 1950s prefigure today's conflicts over the right of journalists to protect their sources.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781592133437
Publisher:	Temple University Press
Publication date:	06/28/2007
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	201
File size:	304 KB

About the Author

Edward Alwood is Associate Professor of Journalism at Quinnipiac University and former Correspondent for CNN. He is the author of Straight News: Gays, Lesbians, and the News Media.

Table of Contents

TABLE OF CONTENTS
        Page
Preface  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

INTRODUCTION  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.   AWAKENING THE NEWSROOM   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2.   THE COMMUNIST CONNECTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

3.   PRELUDE TO AN INVESTIGATION  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

4.   REDS IN THE NEWSROOM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

5.   THE SPECTER OF McCARTHY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

6.   DARK CLOUDS OVER THE NEWSROOM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
7.   THE INVESTIGATION . . . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

8.   DEEPER TROUBLE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

9.   JOURNALISTS AND THE FIRST AMENDMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . .

10.  LESSONS FROM THE PAST . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

List of Abbreviations  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Selected Bibliography  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Appendices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Editorial Reviews

The tension between national security and freedom runs through U.S. history, with the balance shifting as threats are detected or dispatched. Former CNN correspondent Alwood (journalism, Quinnipiac Univ.) explores this tension in his examination of how journalists were targeted during the anti-communist hysteria of the 1950s. (During the Depression, many journalists were attracted to radical movements, and some were instrumental in forming the Newspaper Guild, drawing the FBI's attention.) Alwood relies on previously undisclosed FBI documents to show how journalists were monitored in the 1950s, focusing on hearings held by the Senate Internal Security Subcommittee, chaired by Sen. James Eastland. Journalists were divided in their response, with some cooperating and turning over names while others resisted in an effort to defend the freedom of the press. Under the cover of the anti-communism crusade, Alwood shows, were apprehensions regarding unionism and press coverage of the burgeoning Civil Rights movement. He traces the impact of the Eastland hearings and subsequent court cases about freedom of the press through the Valerie Plame case in summer 2005. This is a fascinating and detailed look at one aspect of the McCarthy era that continues to influence contemporary journalism. Academic libraries will want to purchase for their journalism or U.S. history collections.
—Judy Solberg

Library Journal

"Writing a blurb for this book would be a snap: ‘Every serious journalist should read this fascinating, superbly researched, thoroughly documented, and invaluable historical account of a frightening, sustained and vicious assault on robust journalism—an assault that has great resonance today,’ is what I’d say…For those not old enough to have lived through this time in our nation’s history, having the chance this book gives to absorb its valuable lessons is a gift worth sampling."
—Nieman Reports

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