Two infamous actions in political history took place today: In 1947, the US House of Representatives Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) launched hearings into allegations that Communists had infliltrated the American motion picture industry. In 1973, President Nixon abolished the office of the special prosecutor investigating Watergate after firing Archibald Cox; Attorney General Elliot Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus subsequently resigned in a combined act that is known as the "Saturday Night Massacre."
The HUAC grew out of a pre-WWII investigations committee and became a standing committee of the House in 1946 under the mandate of Public Law 601, the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 (pdf). The Committee, under the leadership of chair J. Parnell Thomas (R-NJ) , questioned 24 "friendly" and 11 "unfriendly" witnesses from the filmmaking industry. Ten of the 11 "unfriendly" witnesses were jailed for contempt -- and blacklisted by the studios (a double whammy) -- for refusing to answer the question "Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Communist Party?"
The 24 "friendly" witnesses included Gary Cooper (a member of the Screen Actors Guild) and Ronald Reagan (president of the Screen Actors Guild); Walt Disney (producer of motion-picture cartoons); and Ayn Rand (Hollywood screenwriter and author of We the Living and The Fountainhead). Links provide excerpts from their testimony.
Rand provided her definition of propaganda, as the Committee had failed to do so:
This fear of communism came to a head a few years later in the period known as "McCarthyism," after Sen. Joseph McCarthy (R-WI). In Senate hearings in the early 50s, McCarthy attacked reputations at will. For a flavor of that time, see George Clooney's new film, Good Night, and Good Luck.
The Washington Post details the events of the Saturday Night Massacre and noted that the departures "immediately raised prospects that the President himself might be impeached or forced to resign."
The investigation of the June 17, 1972 break-in at the Watergate led directly to President Richard M. Nixon and his reelection campaign. It encompassed allegations of political spying and "dirty tricks " -- bribery -- and the illegal use of campaign funds; many allegations were documented on tape. More than 40 government officials were indicted (many went to jail). President Nixon resigned on 9 August 1974.
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Dirty Tricks, HUAC, McCarthy, Nixon, Politics
The HUAC grew out of a pre-WWII investigations committee and became a standing committee of the House in 1946 under the mandate of Public Law 601, the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 (pdf). The Committee, under the leadership of chair J. Parnell Thomas (R-NJ) , questioned 24 "friendly" and 11 "unfriendly" witnesses from the filmmaking industry. Ten of the 11 "unfriendly" witnesses were jailed for contempt -- and blacklisted by the studios (a double whammy) -- for refusing to answer the question "Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Communist Party?"
The 24 "friendly" witnesses included Gary Cooper (a member of the Screen Actors Guild) and Ronald Reagan (president of the Screen Actors Guild); Walt Disney (producer of motion-picture cartoons); and Ayn Rand (Hollywood screenwriter and author of We the Living and The Fountainhead). Links provide excerpts from their testimony.
Rand provided her definition of propaganda, as the Committee had failed to do so:
Nobody has stated just what they mean by propaganda. Now, I use the term to mean that communist propaganda is anything which gives a good impression of communism as a way of life. Anything that sells people the idea that life in Russia is good and that people are free and happy would be communist propaganda. Am I not correct? I mean, would that be a fair statement to make -- that that would be communist propaganda?CNN has an online game where you can pretend to have been called to testify before the Committee.
This fear of communism came to a head a few years later in the period known as "McCarthyism," after Sen. Joseph McCarthy (R-WI). In Senate hearings in the early 50s, McCarthy attacked reputations at will. For a flavor of that time, see George Clooney's new film, Good Night, and Good Luck.
The Washington Post details the events of the Saturday Night Massacre and noted that the departures "immediately raised prospects that the President himself might be impeached or forced to resign."
The investigation of the June 17, 1972 break-in at the Watergate led directly to President Richard M. Nixon and his reelection campaign. It encompassed allegations of political spying and "dirty tricks " -- bribery -- and the illegal use of campaign funds; many allegations were documented on tape. More than 40 government officials were indicted (many went to jail). President Nixon resigned on 9 August 1974.
Technorati Tags and Profile
Dirty Tricks, HUAC, McCarthy, Nixon, Politics
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