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Nathan Herrmann
Cody Carlson
HIST-1700-012

Good Night, and Good Luck

Edward Murrow was a renowned radio and television news broadcaster who began his
career during WWII when he began broadcasting the events of the war for CBS. Most famously
he broadcasted the bombing of London from a rooftop instead of from an underground bunker.
The film Good Night, and Good Luck tells of his later years when television was an emerging
media in the United States.
The film begins with the story of Milo Radulocivh who served in the U.S. Air Force and
was labeled a security risk because his family was thought to have communist sympathies.
Murrow and his broadcasting team tell the story of Radulovich on their television program and
begin the fight against Senator Joseph McCarthy and his communist witch-hunt. Through the
film Murrow faces pressure to stop his programs not only from McCarthy but CBS as well and
ultimately his show is moved from its prime time slot; this is not before the fight against
McCarthy ends in his being investigated by the Senate.
The film itself is presented in complete black and white; giving it a unique way to include
the history of the time in with the actors themselves. During the film there is shown actual cuts
of recorded footage of McCarthy during specific hearings and interviews. This allows the

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audience to view the history and the film at the same time and feel like it is all together with the
unique way that the film is presented.
Rather than try to recreate McCarthy through an actor the film uses actual footage to
represent him. This gives the audience a chance to hear the words, see the actions and have the
same feeling that the American people had during this time; bringing the history to life in a
distinctive way that would be difficult to do by other means. This method of showing events is
true to the way that Murrow had reported by letting the words of McCarthy speak for
themselves.
Along with this many of words used in the broadcasts given by Murrow during the film
are taken directly from the original broadcasts; the only difference being that some parts are
skipped in the interest of time. Though recreated through an actor the words that are spoken are
bold and powerful and tell a lot of what many were thinking and feeling during this time.
The film however is not without its own addition of drama to the scene. The viewer may
feel as though Murrow is the only one who is standing up against McCarthy and even though it
does not say one might believe that it was Murrow along who brought down McCarthy. Looking
back we can see that there were others who were speaking out against McCarthy at this time and
that even President Dwight D. Eisenhower had spoken against McCarthy, saying that he didnt
want to get down in the gutter with that guy.
The role that Murrow played during this time was important, however, in helping change
the minds of the populous against McCarthy. Due to his popularity and use of the emerging
television broadcasting he was able to make a large public display of McCarthy and reach many
people, though he was not alone in doing this.

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At the end the film shows that Murrows show was cut down from prime time to only
five episodes. While this actually did happen the film does not state when. Murrows show
stayed in its prime time slot for a year after the McCarthy broadcast.
In a direct way this film was created to bring perspective on the events after September
11, 2001 and the fear that was present in the American people. Similar to the Cold War fear and
how McCarthy was able to use that to gain power it has been argued that President George W.
Bush followed a similar route. The film then acts as a way to reach out to viewers and raise
awareness of events that are happening around them.
In many ways Murrow spoke out against ignorance and in his speech knows as Wires in
a Light Box he makes the claim that the television, or media broadcasting, can be used to fight
against that ignorance. Today our communication continues to shape the way that we are and
react to certain events. It is important however to learn how to discern between fact and fiction
for as much as our access to information can be good it can be used for equally negative
purposes.

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Work Cited

"American Rhetoric: Edward R. Murrow - Response to McCarthy on CBS' See It Now."

American Rhetoric: Edward R. Murrow - Response to McCarthy on CBS' See It Now.
Web. 4 Sept. 2015.

"Edward R. Murrow: A Report on Senator Joseph R. McCarthy." Edward R. Murrow: A Report

on Senator Joseph R. McCarthy. Web. 4 Sept. 2015.

"Good Night and Good Luck." : Truth Vs. Fiction. Web. 4 Sept. 2015.

"RTDNA - Radio Television Digital News Association." RTDNA. Web. 4 Sept. 2015.

Shafer, Jack. "Good Night, and Good Luck and Bad History." Web. 4 Sept. 2015.