Anti-Communism and Mccarthyism

Between the years of 1947 to 1954 the terms Anti-communism and McCarthyism was being used widely by the press in the United States. In order for understand why, we must first understand the meaning. Anti-communism was the belief that Communist rule was not acceptable. Communism was felt as an imminent threat to the United States after World War 2. The term McCarthyism brought about by actions of former Senator Joseph McCarthy in the 1950’s. It means in other words the use of unfair and reckless accusations to suppress political disloyalty.

The media covered Anti-communism and McCarthyism in a unique way. One news article said that “There are many, of course who will not agree with Senator McCarthy’s anticommunism is the only effective kind of hard anticommunism, or that it is effective anticommunism at all” Canham, E. (1954, November 10). I believe that the media understood how bad communism was but I am not sure that everyone in the media believed in the way Senator McCarthy was headlining his personal feelings. McCarthyism was being pushed by Senator McCarthy throughout the Senate that an overwhelming fear of McCarthy supporters started. The media and the American people knew that the hard core (McCarthy supporters) who regard one issue as overriding all may make mistakes.

Anticommunism feelings have impacted American foreign policy decisions deeply. It is one of the most important forces that drive twentieth-century politics. Anticommunism had its greatest influence on foreign policy during the late 1940’s into the early 1950’s, when it provided the honest and intellectual foundation for the containment policies that underlay the Western alliance against the Soviet Union and other communist regimes. In the years of the Cold War, anticommunism created a movement that caused millions of Americans to oppose the Soviet policies. Today the United Sates still does not condone communism nor does it support any country that has a communist regime....