Abigail Records

3/6/16
Red Group

Good Night, and Good Luck

Good Night, and Good Luck is a movie about Edward R. Murrow, the
CBS news organization, and the conversation they started with viewers about
Joseph McCarthy and his quest to expose communists in the US. One of the
major themes of this movie is the role of an individual in defending civil
liberties. The film follows Murrow during the years of 1953-1954 as he
personifies this theme.
The film opens with the newscasters reporting on a story about a
US serviceman, Radulovich, who was dismissed from the Air Force due to the
questionable actions of his family. Radulovich was being removed even
though no trial was held and no concrete evidence was presented. This
scene sets the stage for internal conversations at CBS news, specifically
between anchorman Edward R. Murrow and his producer Fred Friendly, about
the actions of the United States government and Joseph McCarthy.
Murrow defends Radulovich and convinces CBS to take a stand on
the overreach of McCarthy. CBS broadcasts a show critical of McCarthy,
claiming his actions to be unconstitutional, which leads to a public feud
between McCarthy and Murrow. In McCarthys response to the attack, he
accuses Murrow himself of being a communist in order to try to discredit
Murrow in the eye of the public.

CBS and Murrow continue their exposure of McCarthy by using his

own words and the film of his hearings against him. Murrow argues the
simple idea that McCarthy is trampling on the liberties of individuals.
Ultimately, McCarthy is undone, leading to his eventual censure in the
Senate. Murrows stature as a newsperson is elevated even higher. The
majority of the film is framed by a speech Murrow gave in 1958 speaking
about the power of television as a tool for the media.

Good Night, and Good Luck takes place in the 1950s during the
height of the Cold War. Many citizens of the United States are fearful of the
looming threat of communist expansion, and US government actions
reinforce the idea that communist sympathizers within the US are the
greatest threat to our country. One man in particular, Senator Joseph
McCarthy, seeks to investigate and expose anyone deemed to be a
communist. In a series of hearings known as the McCarthy hearings, the
Senator hunts for communists within the government and government
agencies.
McCarthys hearings in the Senate, along with certain FBI tactics
used for the investigations, ultimately go too far, imposing on the civil
liberties of American citizens as defined by the Constitution. The reputations
of many innocents were ruined by false accusations. In the 60 years since,
McCarthyism is the common name for modern day witch-hunts and has
regained some relevance given the current debate pertaining to security and
terrorism.
Good Night, and Good Luck highlights the impact of television and
how the population received its news and information in the 1950s. As
television was just becoming a common household item, Congressional
hearing and political content was being broadcast for the first time. John
Green of Demand Media noted this impact on McCarthy in his article How
Did Television Change The Politics of the 1950s?:

Sen. Joseph McCarthy's notorious televised hearings on communists in

the army showed how exposing the inner workings of the U.S. political
system could also promote distrust. For instance, the popular
magazine "Collier's" opined that for millions of Americans observing
Congress in action for the first time, the hearings' lack of dignified
statesmanship was all but certain to have fostered disillusionment with
the political system as a whole.

As opposed to today, people relied on major newspapers and

broadcast television networks to deliver them unbiased news, and popular
news anchors were frequently the most trusted people in America. CBS and
Murrow used their platform to take a political stand in a way that is no longer
available to the news media today.
Director George Clooney made this film in 2005, 50 years after the
events portrayed. The historical context of McCarthyism is widely known.
Clooneys political biases do not readily show in this movie, a fact that he
was careful to watch. In an interview with About Entertainment, Clooney
states What I found to do was to go and look at all of the other arguments,
the arguments against Murrow. By sticking to the facts, double sourcing
each item, and giving both sides of the argument of the day, Clooney
presents an unbiased view.

Clooney deftly uses numerous techniques to increase the audiences

awareness of the setting. Clooney transports the viewers back into the
1950s by filming the movie in black and white, which was the most prevalent
medium of the day. Black and white is also how the public would have
watched Murrow at the time. In an interview with About Entertainment,
Clooney states that, I only know Murrow and McCarthy in black and white.
I've never seen them in color and I don't know anything about them in color.
So I think that you have to film things in the way that you remember them.
Another technique used to immerse the viewers in the film is the usage
of actual footage from the time. This includes the interview with Liberace as
well as the many shots and interviews with McCarthy. This technique makes
the movie seem more realistic and factual. While creative liberty was taken
on the personal interactions between the CBS staff, the historical accuracy is
beyond reproach due to the fact that they used direct video and transcripts
of the broadcasts of the time. All of Joseph McCarthys appearances in the
movie were real footage of the Senator and not acted by a separate actor. By
using actual footage from the time, the movie is given more accuracy.
A third simple technique is used to recreate the 1950s in the movie.
This is the prevalent showing of cigarettes and smoking. In the 1950s,
smoking was ubiquitous even in the workplace. Murrow was a chain smoker
and smoked while conducting interviews and delivering the news. In fact,
Murrow died of lung cancer due mainly to his smoking habit. By showing the

reality of the workplace of the time, including showing a smoking

commercial that was broadcast during the news, the film gains additional
authenticity.

Works Cited:
Murray, Rebecca. George Clooney Discusses His Film Good Night, and Good
Luck. About.com. About Entertainment, n. d. Web. March 6, 2016.
Hochscherf,Tobias,andChristophLaucht."GoodNight,andGoodLuck(2005)."F&HEssays
onFilm:GoodNightandGoodLuck.Nov.2012.Web.06Mar.2016.
Green, John. How Did Television Change the Politics of the 1950s?.
Synonym.com. Demand Media, n. d. Web. March 6, 2016.