Social Impacts of the Cold War

Social Effects of the Cold War

To what degree did the Cold War affect American Society?

Espionage: McCarthyism, Blacklisting, and the Red Scare

The Cold War had a large impact on American Society. We researched three parts of American Society during the time of the Cold War that were heavily influenced by this conflict. These areas of focus are; media, espionage, and the civil rights movement.

A Conclusion

In the 1950s, Sen. Joseph McCarthy created a communist witch hunt. He began accusing movie stars and controversial artists of being communists.

In conclusion, the Cold War had a large effect on American society. Americans went through a phase of paranoia related to McCarthyism and his blacklist. Television shows and comics sought to assuage these fears. Meanwhile, the Civil Rights Movement was greatly influenced by the Korean War and Executive Order 9981.

The Rosenbergs were accused and convicted of trading atomic secrets with the Soviets. They were executed with electric chair. There are still some questions regarding whether they were actually guilty.

Civil Rights Movement: Drafting, Laws Passed, and Attitudes Changed

Media: A Closer Look at Cold War Related Television and Literature

The Civil Rights Movement is most commonly associated with the 1960s. But the scope of this movement was much greater. The Cold War and the Civil Rights Movement were similar in that they were as much ideological battles as physical struggles.

African Americans have fought for the US in every war, since the Revolutionary War. These soldiers were placed in separate squads led by white soldiers. These squads were known as "Buffalo Soldiers." They were often discriminated against and sometimes were not allowed to fight for their country. In WWI, thousands of African Americans were drafted. In preparations for WWII, the draft rules underwent a dramatic change. Segregation was no longer allowed in draft selections, meaning that African Americans had an equal chance of being selected to fight in the war. When the Gillem Board was established in 1944, they recommended that there should be more opportunities for African Americans in the army. Young black men were encouraged to sign up for the war.

In 1948, President Harry Truman signed into law the Executive Order 9981 which called for equality in American troops. The army refused to integrate, but the demands of war required them to draft African Americans.

As the cold war gained momentum so did the worlds most new media.

The first television broadcast came in 1927, and by 1953 many people were taking great interest in watching T-V frequently. Some T-V shows were more of a cartoon for kids, like the Bullwinkle show, and some shows were more for adults also, but all getting at the concept of the Cold War. While TV news both covered and influenced the Cold war, other genres reflected the struggle in more subtle ways.