Causes of the Red Scare: McCarthyism

Question 1

Joseph McCarthy was an unpopular senator: he wanted to raise his own profile

Answer 1

• McCarthy was voted the worst senator by a journalist in Washington
• In 1950, at a dinner party, a friend suggested that he could raise his profile by launching a campaign against Communist infiltration of the government
• McCarthy claimed that there were 205 Communists working in the American government

Question 2

McCarthy used the press to publicise his campaign

Answer 2

• He used the radio and newspapers to publicise his campaign
• A number of prominent Republicans and Democrats began supporting his cause
• The public became increasingly paranoid

Question 3

His campaign was helped by outside events

Answer 3

• America suffered military defeats at the hands of Communist China during the Korean War (1950-53). This increased fear of Communism
• In 1954, an American couple, Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, were executed for passing atomic secrets to the Russians

Question 4

The fall of McCarthy

Answer 4

• McCarthy lost political support when he began attacking the army
• He lost public support when the Army hearings were televise and people became aware of his bullying tactics
• He was censured (formally reprimanded) in 1954. He died in 1957