Question

What impact did Joseph Mc Carthy have on American society?

Answer 1

Hint:
- Joseph Mc Carthy was an attorney and a politician. He became the most recognizable public face of an era in the United States when Cold War tensions fueled.
- Hundreds of Americans were suspected of being communists or communist sympathizers during his tenure.

Complete answer:
Mc Carthy, Joseph Raymond (November 14, 1908 – May 2, 1957), was an American politician and lawyer who served as a Republican United States Senator from Wisconsin from 1947 to 1957. Mc Carthy became the most recognizable public face of an era in the United States when Cold War tensions fueled fears of widespread communist subversion, beginning in 1950. He is well-known for claiming that communists and Soviet agents and sympathizers had penetrated the US federal government, universities, film industry, and other institutions. He was eventually censured by the United States Senate for his smear tactics. Mc Carthyism, a term coined in 1950 to describe Mc Carthy's tactics, was rapidly generalized to other anti-communist activities.

In the early 1950s, Joseph Mc Carthy made a significant impact by developing a climate of hysteria and paranoia. Following the establishment of the atomic bomb in the Soviet Union, people were fearful of the Soviet Union. Mc Carthy argued that communists had penetrated many sectors of American society, much like the Rosenbergs, and had thus betrayed their motherland to serve the Soviet Union's interests. He went so far as to create lists that were totally untrustworthy.

The army, as well as Hollywood and the film industry, were subjected to a witch hunt. It lasted until Mc Carthy eventually resigned in 1953.

Note: Remember that during Joseph Mc Carthy’s era, American’s became a subject of aggressive investigation before the government. They were seen as communists or communist sympathizers. Joseph Mc Carthy made a significant impact on the American society by developing a climate of paranoia.