"Good Night, And Good Luck." The movie takes place during the early days of broadcast journalism in 1950's America. It chronicles the real-life conflict between television newsman Edward R. Murrow and Senator Joseph McCarthy and the House Un-American Activities Committee. With a desire to report the facts and enlighten the public, Murrow, and his dedicated staff - headed by his producer Fred Friendly and Joe Wershba in the CBS newsroom - defy corporate and sponsorship pressures to examine the lies and scaremongering tactics perpetrated by McCarthy during his communist 'witch-hunts'. A very public feud develops when the Senator responds by accusing the anchor of being a communist. In this climate of fear and reprisal, the CBS crew carries on and their tenacity will prove historic and monumental. Discussion Questions ~ We will discuss these points in detail. Make notes on this page and be prepared to have discussion points. 1. What do you learn from the opening scene about the era when this movie takes place? What are your clues? 2. In the opening and again throughout the movie, what part does the music play? 3. What do you know about Edward R. Murrow before he even says a word? 4. One of the lines in his speech is, “Our history will be what we make it.” How does this relate to the people to whom he is speaking? 5. What are some clues that Murrow and his producer, Fred Friendly, agree about coverage of the McCarthy situation? 6.Who is Milo Radulovich? Why did Murrow and Friendly think it was important to cover his story? 7. What are some early signs that some at CBS don’t totally agree with what Murrow and Friendly are doing? 8. How does the movie point out the contrast between Murrow’s “See It Now” and his other program “Person to Person”? What does his boss mean when he says Murrow will have to do a lot of “‘Person to Persons’ to make up for this”? 9. What is CBS boss William Paley’s first reason Murrow and Friendly shouldn’t air the Milo Radulovich story? 10. What is the importance of the Don Hollenbeck subplot in the movie? What is Murrow’s relationship to him? Why is the report of his death significant? 11.What are Paley’s reasons for changing the McCarthy program? 12. Why do you think cigarettes and smoke seem to play such a major part in the movie? Why do you think the movie is in black and white? 13. Some critics say the movie ends too abruptly. Do you see any indication of what will happen in the future? 14. Analyze what Murrow means when he quotes Shakespeare and says, “The fault, dear Brutus, is not in the stars but in ourselves.” Edward R. Murrow was born as Egbert Roscoe Murrow on April 25, 1908, near Polecat Creek in Guilford County, North Carolina. By the time he graduated from university in 1930 with a major in speech, Egbert R. Murrow had changed his name to Edward R. Murrow. Murrow married Janet Brewster in 1934, and had one son, Charles Casey. In 1935, Murrow joined CBS as Director of Talks and Education but was transferred as chief of the European Bureau two years later to London. When World War II was declared, Murrow reported firsthand, beginning his broadcast with the phrase that would become his hallmark, "This is London." Murrow returned to the United States at the conclusion of the war in 1945 and was promoted to Vice-President of News, Education, and Discussion Programs, but he resigned the position in 1947. Later that same year, Murrow resumed broadcasting and was elected a Director of CBS in 1949. 1950 brought the beginning of the Korean war, and Murrow traveled there to report the events. The reporter presented weekly digests of news called Hear It Now which was based on the format of an earlier project, I Can Hear It Now. I Can Hear It Now presented history through recorded speeches and news broadcasts of the featured event and was produced by Murrow and Fred W. Friendly. The success of I Can Hear It Now and Hear It Now led to the creation of See It Now, which translated the established format to television. In "This Is Korea ... Christmas 1952," a broadcast of the See It Now program, Murrow's work moved a commentator of the New Yorker magazine to call the program, "One of the most impressive presentations in television's short life." The See It Now program spotlighting Senator Joseph McCarthy (March 9 1954) earned Murrow a Peabody Award and is viewed as a turning point in the "Red Scare." See It Now was also selected "Program of the Year" in 1952 by the National Association for Better Radio and Television, and won an "Emmy", a Look-TV Award, a Sylvania Television Award, and a Variety Showmanship Award. Aside from this successful program, Murrow began Person to Person, Small World, and CBS Reports. In 1960, Murrow produced Harvest of Shame, which depicted the many hardships that plague migrant farm workers. Aired on Thanksgiving day, Murrow's documentary shocked the country, and brought a call for legislation to protect the workers whose labor helps to fill supermarket shelves. Murrow's success in broadcasting and television production made him a household name. He was in great demand as a public speaker and was given honorary degrees by five colleges, including an honorary law degree from the University of North Carolina. Retiring from CBS in 1961, Murrow took the controls of the U.S. Information Agency. He held that position until 1964 when he retired due to lung cancer. Edward R. Murrow died on April 27, 1965, at the age of 57, on his farm in Pawling, New York. Murrow was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 1988 and was pictured on a 29¢ US commemorative postage stamp issued 21 January 1994. Joseph Raymond McCarthy was born on a farm in Grand Chute, near Appleton, Wisconsin, on November 15, 1908. McCarthy started his own chicken business as a teenager, but disease wiped out his flock. Broke at age 20, he worked as a clerk in an Appleton grocery store, quickly becoming manager. In 1929, McCarthy was transferred to Manawa to manage a new grocery store. While there, he entered Little Wolf High School, completing the four-year curriculum in nine months. After gaining his law degree in 1935, McCarthy opened a practice in Waupaca. He later joined a law firm in Shawano, becoming a partner in 1937. McCarthy's first attempt at public office was an unsuccessful run for the post of Shawano District Attorney as a Democrat in 1936. In 1939, he sought the nonpartisan post of judge in the Tenth Judicial Circuit, covering Langlade, Shawano, and Outagamie Counties. At age 30, McCarthy became the youngest circuit judge ever elected in Wisconsin. In July, 1942, shortly after the start of World War II, McCarthy took a leave of absence and was commissioned a first lieutenant in the Marines. As an intelligence officer stationed in the Pacific, he participated in combat bombing missions, although he was not wounded in action as he later claimed. While still on active duty in 1944, McCarthy challenged incumbent Alexander Wiley for the Republican nomination to the U.S. Senate, but was soundly defeated. In April, 1945, having resigned his military commission, McCarthy was re-elected without opposition to the circuit court. He immediately began planning for the 1946 Senate campaign. In the general election, McCarthy easily defeated his Democratic opponent and went to Washington at age 38, the youngest member of the new Senate. The biggest national issue at the time was the suspicion of communist infiltration of the United States government following a series of investigations and espionage trials. McCarthy engaged this issue on February 9, 1950, in a speech before a Republican women’s group in Wheeling, West Virginia. In his address, McCarthy charged that U.S. Secretary of State Dean Acheson knew of 205 communists in the State Department. Later, McCarthy claimed to have the names of 57 State Department communists, and called for an investigation. McCarthy’s charges caused a furor. In response, the Senate appointed a committee under the direction of Senator Millard Tydings, Democrat of Maryland, who opened hearings on March 8, 1950. Though McCarthy had hired investigators of his own, all the names he eventually supplied to the committee were of people previously examined. McCarthy failed to name a single current State Department employee. On July 17, 1950, the Tydings committee issued a report that found no grounds for McCarthy’s charges. McCarthy, however, refused to back down, issuing further accusations of communist influence on the government. These charges received extensive media attention, making McCarthy the most famous political figure in the nation after President Harry Truman. He was also one of the most criticized. Throughout the early 1950s, McCarthy continued to make accusations of communist infiltration of the U. S. government, though he failed to provide evidence. McCarthy himself was investigated by a Senate panel in 1952. McCarthy was re-elected in 1952 with 54% of the vote. In the fall of 1953, McCarthy investigated the Army Signal Corps, but failed to uncover an alleged espionage ring. The opposition grew with the March 9, 1954, CBS broadcast of Edward R. Murrow’s "See It Now," which was an attack on McCarthy and his methods. The Army then released a report charging that McCarthy and his aide, Roy Cohn, had pressured the Army to give favored treatment to G.