Original subtitles

(indistinct chatter)

♪ ßazz music playing) ♪

♪ (music concludes) ♪

man: Okay. You want to ]ust lay this down?

- Ella: Ready when you are. - man: I'm ready.

Ella: Are you recording?

Man: (chuckles) I am now.

♪ ("When I Fall In Love" by Nat King Cole playing) ♪

Ella: (singing) ♪ When I fall in love ♪

♪ It will be forever ♪

♪ Or I'll never ♪

♪ Fall in love ♪

♪ In a restless world ♪

♪ Like this ♪

♪ Love is ended Before it's begun ♪

♪ And too many ♪

♪ Moonlight kisses ♪

♪ Seem to cool ♪

♪ In the warmth of the sun ♪

♪ When I give my heart ♪

♪ It will be completely ♪

♪ Or I'll never give ♪

♪ My heart ♪

♪ And the moment ♪

♪ I can feel ♪

♪ That you feel ♪

♪ That way too ♪

♪ Is when I fall in love ♪

♪ With you ♪

♪ Or I'll never fall ♪

♪ In love ♪

♪ And the moment ♪

♪ I can feel that ♪

♪ You feel ♪

♪ That way too ♪

♪ Is when I fall in love ♪

♪ With you ♪

♪ (song concludes) ♪

(audience cheering, applauding)

This just might do nobody any good.

At the end of this discourse, a few people may accuse

this reporter of fouling his own comfortable nest.

And you all may be accused of giving hospitality

to heretical and even dangerous thoughts.

It is my desire, if not my duty,

to try to speak to you with some candor

about what is happening in our mass media.

You should know at the outset

that I appear here voluntarily, by invitation,

and that these remarks are strictly

of a do-it-yourself nature.

If what I have to say is responsible,

I alone am responsible for the saying of it.

I've decided to express my concern

on the manner in which we inform ourselves.

I am seized by an abiding fear of what these instruments

are doing to our society, our culture, our heritage.

Our history will be what we make of it.

And if any historians,

fifty to 100 years from now were to look,

they would in there find evidence of decadence,

escapism, and insulation

from the realities of the world in which we live.

And surely we will pay a price.

We are currently fat, comfortable, and complacent.

We have a built-in allergy to unpleasant

or disturbing information,

but unless we get off of our fat assets

and recognize that media in the main

is being used to distract, delude, amuse,

and insulate us,

then those who finance it, those who profit from it,

those who work at it, and those who consume it

may see a totally different picture too late.

Good evening. Earlier tonight, Adlai E. Stevenson

urged the United States to take the initiative

in peace talks with the Soviet Union.

The talks are aimed toward worldwide disarmament

and assurances of non-aggression for the Russians,

- as well as for the free world. - (telephone ringing)

In a broadcast from his globe-circling tour,

Stevenson warned the Eisenhower administration

against shutting the door on conferences

with the Soviet leaders

and putting too much pressure...

- I'll be right down. - ...on the uncommitted

- bloc of nations not linked with... - Millie!

This is the Annie Lee Moss footage from yesterday.

Okay, I'll give it to you. Wait, it's only two cans?

What? Oh, yeah, that's all it is,

but there's some notes with it to go for Fred.

Oh, Fred's in with the guys.

(laughs) Okay, I'll give the film to Leo.

You can go ahead and give the notes to Fred.

Both: He's in the writer's room.

- Yeah. Thank you, Palmer. - Thank you, Millie.

Palmer: Good day, Shirley. I want a half full...

Hi, Joe. Shirley, what's going on in here?

- Hey, Palmer. - Hello, Palmer.

- Just making some copies for the... - Nothing.

Just making sure. Two attractive people alone in a copy room.

- (laughs) Okay, Palmer. - I mean... (clears throat)

- Don't tell anyone anything. - I, uh, certainly

won't say anything.

Well, don't tell Fred. He'll fire me.

Well, I mean, both of us. Shirley, it's the nepotism rule.

The nepotism rule.

You know, I think Joe would get the axe.

(chuckles) Well, uh, rules are made to be broken.

You can afford to say that.

Oh, actually, Shirley, I think he's right.

What do you say? You want to get a drink tonight?

You're just a couple of guys trying to help.

The day I need dating advice from you two knuckleheads is...

Ouch. All right.

- (typewriter keys clacking) - (sighs)

Let me see this.

I don't know.

It's simply a loyalty oath.

I mean, there's nothing in there about...

- To CBS? - To America.

You promise to be a loyal American?

- All the reporters have it. - Who were you promising this to?

- Fred signed it. And Murrow. - CBS, Paley...

- Murrow signed it? - Joe: Murrow signed it.

"Are you now, or have you ever been,

a member of these organizations..."

Joe: I've had it for a while now. I thought this was a joke.

...that appeared on the Attorney General's list of subversive groups?

It's a lot of pressure.

I don't know.

All right, let's think about this.

What is it really saying?

Is it a civil liberties issue? Is it censorship?

I don't know.

I mean, is it simply stating to CBS that I'm not a communist?

- Murrow signed it. - And Fred.

- Maybe you should talk to Fred. - Well, I talked to Fred.

He told me to sign it.

If you don't sign it, are you and I a target?

If I don't sign it, they will fire me.

Well...

at least then we can tell everyone the truth.

(laughs) Okay, all right.

Joe: Did they got the film?

Yeah, it's all queued up and ready to go.

Oh, Eddie, you're right.

I went through the D.C. phone book.

More than one Annie Lee Moss in there, right?

- Oh, yeah, a lot more. - See? I told you.

All right, here they are. Hey, Joe, we got it queued up.

Hey, Fred, do you want a cigarette?

No, I'll just breathe the air.

(audience laughing)

Okay, thank you. All right.

- Ready? All right. - Yeah.

On this reel, this woman, Annie Lee Moss.

This is the person McCarthy has spent two weeks

claiming was a spy in the Pentagon.

Yeah, well, she was a clerk in the communications office.

Right.

So, after all this buildup, she finally comes in.

McCarthy only asks her four questions,

and he gets up and he leaves.

Wait, wait, wait. He just left?

Well, he realized he had nothing, so Leo, hit it.

Palmer: Yeah, yeah, yeah...

McCarthy: And, uh... (clearing throat)

...you say you personally did not know Robert Hall.

- No, sir. - McCarthy: That you were

not there when he came to the house.

- That's right. - McCarthy: Uh...

Do you know what business

Robert Hall had with your husband,

besides merely delivering the copy of the daily work?

- No, sir. I do not. - McCarthy: Uh...

I'm afraid I'm going to have to excuse myself.

I've got a rather important appointment tonight,

which I've got to work on right now.

And I wonder if none of them are...

Charlie: Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.

- (indistinct chatter) - Palmer: It's his genetic.

All right, look, and Charlie gets a shot at the empty chair.

- McCarthy: Chairman... - Right there!

...I have no further questions of this witness at this time.

We have the testimony of Mrs. Markward,

the undercover agent for the FBI,

stating that Annie Lee Moss was a member,

a dues-paying member of the Communist Party...

The Northeast Club of the Communist Party.

Fred: Leo, that's enough. Turn it off.

Eddie: Oh, that Roy Coho's a real charmer.

Ed, Ed, did you see that he just walked out?

- She is not a spy. - You don't know that.

Boy, I'll take the odds on it, Fred.

- (laughs) - What do you think, Ed?

You haven't made your case.

He's lying.

What's your proof?

I... I think it's pretty obvious.

Is that our standard now, what you think?

McCarthy told the whole country he found the spy

in the Pentagon, and it was her.

Meaning what?

(scoffs) I mean, Ed, does she look like a spy to you?

What does a spy look like, Palmer?

He got up and left his own hearing.

Prove she's not a spy and you have a story.

Until then, you haven't made your case. File it.

Okay, fellas, let's save it

with the rest of the Senate footage. Thanks.

Fred, uh...

Did you guys look at the Secretary Stevens stuff?

- We will, John. Not yet. - Just watch it to the end.

- All the way to the end. - Thank you, John.

- Thank you, John. - It's worth it.

(audience laughing)

It's pretty good stuff, Ed.

You ever spent any time in Detroit, Fred?

We got 20 or so of these pieces filed.

- We could use a couple... - Detroit Free Press,

Dexter, Michigan.

Kid named Milo Radulovich.

- Italian? - Irish.

Air Force kicked him out because his dad read

some Serbian newspaper.

They called Milo a security risk.

- Is his dad a Communist? - I don't know.

- Who brought the charges? - The Air Force.

The charges were in a sealed envelope.

- Nobody saw them. - Not even at the hearing?

He was declared guilty without a trial

and told that if he wants to keep his job

he has to denounce his father and his sister.

So he told them to take a hike.

His sister, huh?

Let's send Joe and Charlie down there,

see if he's any good on camera.

Is he being brought before the committee?

- No. - So it's not McCarthy.

Isn't it?

Milo Radulovich.

Lieutenant Radulovich. Uh, Milo, let me ask you this.

What happens now to your two children,

that is your five-year-old and your five-month-old,

in terms of you?

Yes. If I am being ]udged on my relatives,

if... Are my children going to be asked to, uh,

denounce me? Are they going to be ]udged

on what their father was labeled?

Are they going to, uh,

have to explain to their friends, et cetera,

why their father is a security risk?

I... I see, absolutely, that this is a chain reaction

if the thing is let stand as the first recommendation

was sent out by the board, I see a chain reaction that...

(scoffs) ...has no end to anybody, for anybody.

Well, that's new.

And I don't think you can call this a neutral piece.

We tried to talk to the Air Force...

I think the other side's been represented--

They haven't gone on record.

Their lawyers won't unseal the envelope.

Hey! So you just want to forego the standards

you've stuck to for over 15 years?

Both sides, no commentary.

(overlapping dialogues)

Hey, hey, hey, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

I'm just making sure we identify what it is you're both doing.

I can't find any justification for this.

I can't accept that on every story

there are two equal and logical sides.

You want to call that editorializing?

We'll give them equal time.

- It is editorializing. Period. - (sighs)

You understand the position you're putting us in?

We're all in it together.

If the Senate or the Air Force asks for equal time...

Oh, Fred, do me this favor.

Avoid any speeches about how we're all

in a big boat together.

- (audience laughing) - Please, don't insult me.

I have to go back to ALCOA,

who sponsors your show and also has military contracts,

and I gotta tell them they might get caught

in a tough bind because you had a beef with Joe McCarthy.

I'm not going at Joe McCarthy...

Well, you're starting a goddamn fire.

- I know what this is, Ed. - All right.

Now, you guaranteed me. This goes back to Hear it Now.

You guaranteed that corporate would have

no influence over news content.

What I'm saying is, please don't try to con me

into thinking this will be good for me.

Just do me that courtesy.

I-- I'm sorry, Mr. Paley, Mr. Murrow.

Fred, there's a Colonel Anderson here to see you.

Fred: Okay, Shirley.

- Where is he? - He's in your office.

Sorry, gentlemen. Uh...

Maybe this guy loves the transcript

and is here to congratulate me.

- (both chuckle) - (audience laughing)

Go after Joe Kennedy. We'll pay for it.

(audience laughing)

We got a great story about Hoover.

(chuckles) Do you know how many Person to Persons

you'll have to do to make this up?

Oh, Judy and her daughter Liza next week.

No chance.

You will be interviewing Lassie and then Mr. Ed back to back.

(audience laughing)

ALCOA won't pay for it.

We probably won't either. Nobody will stop you.

- How much are the ads? - Three thousand.

I'll split it with Fred. He just won't have

Christmas presents for his kid this year.

- He's a Jew. - (audience laughing)

Well, go tell Fred. He loves Christmas.

(telephone ringing)

Colonel.

Colonel Anderson: Mr. Friendly.

Please.

I trust you've had a chance to review the transcript.

We have,

but we've not been allowed to see the footage.

We're still shooting it.

Charlie Mack is on a plane from Dexter

with the last of the interviews.

We'll be going right down to the wire.

Your show airs tomorrow.

How can we possibly comment on what we're being accused of?

- You haven't given us the f... - Colonel...

With all due respect...

you have been invited to comment on this piece.

Not to approve this piece.

We are going with the story that says that the US Air Force

tried Milo Radulovich without one shred of evidence

and found him guilty of being a security risk

without the Constitutional right...

And you have also not seen the evidence

claiming he's not.

Wouldn't you guess that the people

that have seen the contents of that envelope

might know a little more about what makes a person

- a danger to his country? - Who are these people?

- Are they elected, appointed? - Should it just be you that decides?

Do they have an axe to grind?

- Is it you, sir? - Mister...

Do you know even the contents of that sealed envelope?

We have been a friend and ally of Mr. Murrow and CBS News.

The story you intend to air is without merit.

Now, before you take steps that cannot be undone,

I urge you to reconsider your stand.

These are very dangerous waters you're attempting to navigate.

Two minutes to air!

Damn it, Millie, unload that thing before I crack.

- Millie: A couple more seconds. - All right.

Millie: Okay.

- Is Don ready for this? - I don't know.

Tell him I front-loaded the opening

with about five seconds extra.

Front-loaded, five seconds. Thank you, Millie.

Oh, Millie, tell Joe he's gonna have

- to do the voiceover live. - Millie: Joe's on set.

- We ain't got time... - Millie: No, you tell him.

...to sync it up. We need a live mic on the floor.

Millie: I'll get the mic set.

Palmer: Hi, Don. It's front-loaded.

- How much? - Palmer: By about five seconds.

Don Hewitt: I said it's too much!

Palmer: And it's missing the voice-over...

Okay. Which piece is Joe gonna do live?

- Palmer: His questions. - Why don't we try to sync it up

- with the whole show on air? - Yeah, Joe can do it live.

- I hate this. - You love it.

Fred. Fred, did you time Ed's intro?

- I think we're gonna be long. - Long is good, Don.

Remember, no commercial break.

Right. Right, I've gotta add two minutes.

Don, they're doing a commercial in the booth.

What commercial? We didn't have any commercial!

Okay. Yeah. Eddie, set up a mic.

Millie: I got it, Don. I got it.

Don Hewitt: And get that idiot out of the booth!

Edward: Natalie...

Don Hewitt: Joe, it's too loud in here.

- One minute. - Three. Okay. Thank you.

- (indistinct chatter) - Fred: We got the film.

Will it be ready?

Yep.

What do you think, Freddie? Every time you light

a cigarette for me, I know you're lying.

(audience laughing)

We'll have it. We'll have it.

What'd the colonel tell you yesterday?

(laughing) He wasn't too pleased.

You're gonna get audited this year.

Not me, you.

I told him I didn't want to do the piece.

(audience laughing)

You always were yellow.

- Better than red. - Don Hewitt: Twenty seconds.

You know...

it occurs to me we might not get away with this one.

(clears throat)

(commercial running indistinctly in the background)

Don Hewitt: Ten seconds.

In five, four, three, two...

announcer: Stand by now for See it Now

with Edward R. Murrow.

♪ (theme music playing) ♪

announcer: ALCOA, Aluminum Company of America,

in cooperation with CBS Television,

presents the distinguished reporter and news analyst

Edward R. Murrow in See it Now,

edited and produced by Mr. Murrow

and Fred W Friendly,

a weekly presentation of Aluminum Company of America,

the nation's leading producer of aluminum.

Now speaking to you from the control room

of Studio 41

- is the editor of See it Now... - Don Hewitt: Live in five,

- ...four, three, two... - ...Edward R Murrow.

Good evening.

A few weeks ago there appeared a few obscure notices

in the newspapers about a Lt. Milo Radulovich,

a lieutenant in the Air Force Reserve.

And also something about Air Force regulation 35-62.

That is a regulation which states that a person

may be regarded as a security risk

if he has close and continuing association with communists

or people believed to have Communist sympathies.

The Lieutenant was asked to resign in August.

He declined. A board was called and his case was heard.

At the end, it was recommended that he be severed

from the Air Force, although it was also stated

that there was no question whatsoever

as to the Lieutenant's loyalty.

We propose to examine, insofar as we can,

the case of Milo Radulovich.

Our reporter, Joe Wershba, cameraman, Charlie Mack.

Joe: This is the town of Dexter, Michigan,

population, 1,500.

This is the story of Milo Radulovich.

No special hero, no martyr.

He came to Dexter one year ago

after ten years in the Air Force.

The Air Force, uh... (clears throat)

...does not question my loyalty in the least.

They have reiterated that on several occasions.

Uh... They have presented me with allegations

against my sister and father,

uh, that they have, uh...

To the effect that my sister and dad have taken...

have read what are now called subversive newspapers,

and that, um...

my sister and father's activities are questionable.

That's the specific charge or allegation,

I prefer to call it, against them.

Lt. Radulovich was defended by attorney Charles C. Lockwood,

and this is the report on the hearing.

The Air Force did not produce a single witness.

We were not told who the accusers were.

We had no right to confront them

or to cross-examine them.

But at the conclusion of the trial,

although we had met the allegations,

the Air Force made findings

at the conclusion of the hearing

that every single allegation was true.

This is the sister, Margaret Radulovich Fishman.

She neither defends nor explains her political activities.

I feel that my activities, well, be they what they may,

or my political beliefs, are my own private affair.

And I feel that the charges, uh...

leveled against me and by reason of which he is...

they are trying to purge him from the Army, are, uh,

]ust, you know, it ]ust seemed to me to be

a fantastic trend in this country.

Milo, I guess a lot of people must have asked you

from time to time.

Wouldn't it have been a lot easier for you if you'd...

Well, just kept sort of quiet about the whole thing?

Maybe resigned and nobody would have known anything about it,

and all this trouble wouldn't have come to you?

Yes, that's right. I could have signed a, uh,

resignation form, which was titled

''A resignation in Lieu of Elimination from the Service. ''

And this would have given me an honorable discharge.

However, the honorable discharge would have stipulated

that I had, you know, been discharged, uh,

because the Air Force could not trust me.

In other words, because I have been discharged

as a security risk.

And what happens to your two children?

That is your five-year-old and your five-month-old

in terms of you?

Yes, if I am being ]udged on my relatives,

if, uh, are my children going to be asked to, uh...

denounce me? Are they going to be ]udged

on what their father was labeled?

Are they going to, uh,

have to explain to their friends, et cetera,

why their father is a security risk?

I see absolutely that this is a chain reaction

if... if the thing is let stand as the first recommendation,

uh, was sent out by the board, I see a chain reaction

- that has no end to anybody... - Five, four, three, two...

...for anybody.

Perhaps you'll permit me to read a few sentences just at the end

because I'd like to say rather precisely what we mean.

We have told the Air Force that we will provide facilities

for any corrections or criticisms

it should like to make in the case of Milo Radulovich.

We are unable to judge the charges against

the Lieutenant's father or sister because neither we,

nor you, nor they, nor the lawyers

know precisely what was contained

in that manila envelope.

Was it hearsay, rumor, gossip, slander?

Or was it hard ascertainable fact

that can be backed by credible witnesses?

We do not know.

We believe the son shall not bear the iniquity

of the father even if that iniquity be proved.

And, in this case, it was not.

But we also believe that this case illustrates the urgent need

for the Armed Forces to communicate more fully

than they have so far done the regulations and procedures

to be followed in attempting to protect national security

and the rights of the individual.

In any case, whatever happens in this whole area

of the relationship between the individual

and the state, we will do it ourselves.

It cannot be blamed on Malenkov or Mao Tse-Tung

or even our allies. And it seems to us,

that is Fred Friendly and myself,

that this is a subject that should be

argued about endlessly.

Good night and good luck.

An nou ncer: Friday's Edward R. Murrow

Person to Person, on the CBS Television Network.

Don Hewitt: And we're out.

(audience applauding)

- Are we in for it, Freddy? - (telephone ringing)

- I think we're fine. - (audience laughing)

♪ ("I've Got My Eyes On You" by Fred Astaire playing) ♪

Ella: Oh, I like the sound of this. (giggling)

What's this tune? Ah, all right.

I sure hope I remember these words.

It's been a while. Right here.

(sings) ♪ I've got my eyes On you ♪

♪ So best beware Where you roam ♪

♪ I... ♪

- ♪ No, don't know the word ♪ - man : Great.

♪ I thought I did But I don't... ♪

Incidentally.

♪ Incidentally I... ♪

Thank you, Lorain.

(sings) ♪ Set my spies on you I'm checking on all you do ♪

♪ From A to Z ♪

♪ So, darling, ]ust be wise ♪

♪ Keep your eyes on me ♪

♪ Keep your eyes on me ♪

All right, let's take five. Gotta learn these words.

- ♪ (song concludes) ♪ - ♪ (piano playing) ♪

(audience applauding)

♪ (music concludes) ♪

Oh, that's all the room we had on the fence for it.

Lee, how old are you?

I'm 35, Ed.

Well, at 35, looking back at all that's happened,

what comes to your mind first?

Ed, I would say that God has been very, very good to us

in making all of this happen to our family.

And I suppose that nowhere but in the United States

could this happen to an ordinary

American family like ours.

I'm very grateful.

Well, surely something must get under your skin

once in a while, doesn't it?

Well, about the only thing that bothers me is

when people accuse me of,

uh, having a following only of nice old ladies.

I have nothing against the nice old ladies,

but I like nice young ladies, too.

- (audience laughing) - Well, Lee,

thanks so much for letting us come and visit you.

And will you say goodnight

to the rest of your family for us?

- Liberace: I certainly would. - Thanks. Thanks a lot.

Thank you so much. Good night, Ed.

Good night, Lee.

Next week we'll take you to Beverly Hills, California,

and the home of Mickey Rooney and his new bride.

Until then, good night and good luck.

John: And we're out.

(audience laughing)

cameraman: Good show, Ed.

(audience laughing)

♪ (gentle music playing) ♪

Mr. Murrow.

Uh, Mr. Murrow, Mr. Paley was wondering

- if you'd meet him for a drink. - When ?

Uh, now. He's at the Pentathon Bar.

What's he doing there?

Will you just call him, Shirley, will you, please?

- Shirley: I'll let him know. - Edward: Thank you.

- Shirley: Hi, Don. - Hi, Shirley.

Huh. (chuckles)

(grunts)

You're getting good at this, Ed.

They're gonna think you like it.

(chuckles) Pays the bills. How are you, Don?

It's day to day.

Well, if she saw how good you look right now, she'd be back.

Tell her that if you see her, will ya?

So I read the O'Brian piece.

Yeah, it's pretty tough.

I'm a pinko. I slant the news.

Just waiting for him to say my wife left me too.

Well, nobody worth their salt reads him.

- You read him. - Well, see, I rest my case.

(audience laughing)

Does Paley read him?

Bill Paley's not going to do anything, Don.

Listen, Ed. Thanks.

I just came over because I wanted to say

how great the Lieutenant piece was.

- Thanks. - How's the fallout?

Mostly good, surprisingly.

Is this the start? Are you taking sides?

It's just a little poke with a stick, see what happens.

Well, let me know if I can help.

- But you're a pinko, Don. - I'll see you, Ed.

- Yeah. (laughs) - (laughs)

P.A. announcer: May I have your attention, please, on track one.

The 8:30 train to New Haven has been canceled.

We apologize for any inconvenience.

Hey, Joe, what's all this Radwich junk you're putting out?

Oh, Don, I got nothing to say to you now.

We just gotta get this film off to the lab.

What would you say if I told you

that Murrow was on the Soviet payroll in 1934?

Uh, give us a sec, will you, Charlie?

Sure. I gotta use the head anyway.

Hey, Joe, watch yourself with this guy. (chuckling)

ls, uh, McCarthy going to the Eisenhower dinner?

No idea. I don't keep the Senator's calendar for him, Joe.

Oh, really?

P.A. announcer: This is a track change announcement.

The 8:45 Northeast Corridor train to New York City

will be arriving on track two.

What, you don't watch any spy films, Donald?

You can't just hand me a classified folder.

You gotta slip it in my briefcase

when I'm not looking.

It's actually perfect. I didn't know who to give

this information to, Paley or Murrow.

As you can imagine, Fred and I aren't very friendly.

- No pun intended. - No pun elocuted.

(audience laughing)

Elocuted. Is that a word or did you just make that up?

You boys and your words.

Is Ed in New York right now memorizing a thesaurus? Joe.

What's another word for thesaurus?

Oh, it must be awfully quiet

at the Algonquin now that you're gone.

Except for Harpo talking away.

All right, Donald, what do you got?

In short, Ed Murrow's been a communist sympathizer

since the 1930s.

Member of the Industrial Workers of the World,

sponsor of educational trips to Moscow

and on the Soviet payroll in 1934. It's all there.

Uh, you, uh...

You want to know why that's not possible?

Or why you're gonna lose this one, Donald?

Because everybody in the country knows

that, if nothing else, Ed Murrow is a loyal American.

- He is a patriot. - Hmm.

Did you know that the word gullible

isn't in the dictionary, Joe?

- Can I give this to Ed? - I'd like you to.

I have copies.

I think you guys go too far.

Well, if it walks like a duck and talks like a duck...

It's a terrible shame.

Murrow's brother being a general in the Air Force.

What'd I miss?

Nothing.

Donald was just leaving. He's...

- got a hole to crawl back into. - (scoffs) Give my best to Ed.

- Bill. - Hello, Ed.

How's Janet? How's your boy?

- All well, how's babe? - Fine. She's fine.

Well, her fundraiser got rained on.

That's why I don't plan anything.

Really? You wouldn't know it.

- Reading fiction? - I hope. (laughs) You tell me.

Well, we know how they're gonna come at us.

That's just the first shot. Somebody will go down.

Now, have you checked your facts?

- Are you on safe ground? - It's time. Show our cards.

They're my cards.

You lose, what happens?

Five guys find themselves out of work.

I am responsible for a hell of a lot more

than five goddamn reporters.

Let it go.

McCarthy will self-destruct, Cohn, all of them.

It's not like you to run from a fight.

William: I'm not running from anything.

- Is that so? - Hey, I write your check.

I put you in that country house. I put your son through school.

And you should have told me about this

before it got so far down the road.

Is it an apology that you want?

We don't make the news, Ed. We report the news.

Ninety-nine percent of the time he is wrong

about the people he labels as being a communist.

If he goes too far, the Senate will investigate him,

- and we will report on that. - 100e/e of the time

he is wrong when he steps on their civil liberty.

What are you doing, Ed? You are trying him in the press.

No. You have decided on this,

and you're presenting it as fact.

So where do you wanna take this?

(sighs)

Every one of your boys has to be clean.

You understand? No ties.

If Aaron's mother went

to a group theater fundraiser in 1932, he is out.

Hewitt, too. Everyone in that room.

Make no mistake, I will cut them loose.

And corporate will not interfere with editorial.

But editorial will not jeopardize

the hundreds of employees

of the Columbia Broadcasting System.

- (intercom ringing) - Yes?

Secretary: Mr. Paley,

Senator Symington is on the phone.

And we're not advertising it.

Hello, Stu. Right.

Well, yes, Senator, I do have a question.

The US military is said to have

better nuclear capabilities with much smaller bombs.

But the Soviets have developed longer-range missiles,

which pits the two powers against each other

in a race to build the first intercontinental rocket

capable of delivering a nuclear explosion.

The Soviets believe they have the upper hand.

But military experts here at home are confident

the US will win the race

to complete a full and functioning missile,

- capable of carrying a nuclear bomb. - Is this about our sponsors?

John: Are we afraid of losing our sponsors?

Palmer: Have we lost sponsors?

- Come on. - I don't understand...

Fellas, listen... Let me make it easier.

I just need to know, for the good of the peace,

if any of you have any connection at all.

Read a Communist newsletter. Traveled to St. Petersburg.

Was your mother dating a socialist in 1922?

Why don't you leave my mother out of this?

Don't care. I just need to know.

You know, I had a fling with a fascist once.

Oh, that must have been fun.

No, not after the war. They were a little down.

Fred: Knock it off. Knock it off.

Maybe it was you, Eddie. It was definitely you, Eddie.

And I think I should excuse myself.

I'm gonna have to excuse myself.

(overlapping speech)

No, really, let me get out now.

- I don't wanna hurt us. - Christ. Okay, that kills us.

Oh.

My ex was...

I... (sighs) I wouldn't say she was a communist, but...

she certainly attended meetings.

It was before we were married,

and it never came up until after we were divorced.

It didn't matter then, we were...

We were all on the same side.

Look, I'm not telling you anything you don't already know.

But the thing of it is, somebody will find out

and they'll hurt us with it.

Hurt us? We can't do the story.

I should have told you sooner.

(sighs) I'm sorry, Fred. Ed...

Sit down, Palmer.

Sit down.

(scoffs) I...

If none of us ever read a book that was dangerous

or had a friend that was different,

or joined an organization that advocated change...

we would all be the exact kind of person Joe McCarthy wants.

We're gonna go with the story...

because the terror is right here in this room.

Our next report will be about the Junior Senator

from Wisconsin and, Fred, we use only his words,

you understand?

Okay, fellas, that's it.

All the footage we've banked. Everything.

John, you and Joe and Charlie go through the HUAC hearings.

Eddie and Palmer, see what else we have.

Any speeches he gave or interviews.

His own words, boys, that's what we need.

Millie, give me those notes.

- Millie: Here. - (audience laughing)

♪ ("Let's Face The Music And Dance" by Nat King Cole playing) ♪

(sings) ♪ There may trouble ahead ♪

♪ But while there's moonlight ♪

♪ And music and love And romance ♪

♪ Let's face the music And dance ♪

♪ Before the fiddlers Have fled ♪

♪ Before they ask us To pay the bill ♪

♪ And while we still Got a chance ♪

♪ Let's face the music And dance ♪

♪ Soon, we'll be Without the moon ♪

♪ Humming a different tune And then ♪

♪ There may be teardrops To shed ♪

♪ But while there's moonlight And music ♪

♪ And love and romance ♪

♪ Let's face the music And dance ♪

♪ Let's face the music ♪

♪ And dance ♪

♪ (song concludes) ♪

Don Hewitt: Two minutes to air.

- Are we gonna make it? - We lost a projector.

Yeah, we'll make it.

Excuse me, Mr. Murrow. Uh, Mr. Paley's on the line.

Maybe he's gonna reimburse us for the ads.

- (indistinct chatter) - You'd like that.

- Fred: I would like that. - (clears throat)

This is Ed.

Hey, the Knickerbockers are playing tonight

and I got front row seats. Are you interested?

I'm a little busy bringing down the network tonight, Bill.

(audience laughing)

Oh, is that tonight?

- The Knickerbockers you said. - William: Front row.

It's tempting.

So you know, we're covered.

All right.

I'm with you tonight, Ed.

And I'll be with you in the morning as well.

Thanks, Bill.

Shirley: What do you think, Joe?

I think we're ready.

I wish we could wait till we get more footage.

I just don't think we can take the chance.

I think that we have to hit McCarthy

before he can come after Ed.

Well, they haven't gone after The Alsops or Herb Block.

Yeah. (scoffs) The Alsops and Herb Block didn't work

for the Institute of International Education in 1934.

Then I guess it's time.

- Okay. - Shirley: Hi.

- Hi. - Hi.

Shirley: Bye.

- Bye. - Bye.

You worried?

I didn't think I was. Uh...

I... I don't know why. I was in the office on Friday.

I answered the phone.

It was Howard calling from London.

He asked me what was going on with McCarthy

and before I answered him I turned

and looked over my shoulder to see who was listening.

And who was listening?

- Chairman Mao. - (laughs)

- Ah, Joe, your ring. - Jesus Christ.

Name me another wife who reminds her husband

to take off his wedding ring before he goes to the office.

- Ava Gardner. - (audience laughing)

Don Hewitt: Thirty seconds.

(indistinct chatter)

(commercial playing in the background)

(clears throat) Beautiful.

- Don Hewitt: Twenty seconds. - announcer: The new Deft spray.

The 100% active hair dressing and conditioner...

(continues indistinctly) ...for that always-in-command look.

Command grooms as no other men's hair dressing can.

Don Hewitt: Ten seconds.

Announcer: ...penetrate and condition

each and every hair and hungry hair follicle...

Don Hewitt: In five, four, three, two.

Good evening.

Because a report on Senator Joseph R. McCarthy

is by definition controversial, we wanna say

exactly what we mean and request permission to read

from a script any remarks Murrow and Friendly may make.

If the Senator feels that we have done violence

to his words or pictures and he wishes to speak

to answer himself,

an opportunity will be afforded him

on this program.

Our working thesis tonight is from this quotation,

"If this fight against Communism has made a fight

between America's two great political parties,

the American people know that one of those parties

will be destroyed and the Republic cannot endure

very long as a one-party system."

We applaud that statement.

We think Senator McCarthy should as well.

He said it 17 months ago in Milwaukee.

The American people realize

that this cannot be made a fight

between America 's two great political parties.

If the fight against Communism is made a fight

between America 's two great political parties,

the American people know that one of those parties

will be destroyed and the Republic can't endure

very long as a one-party system.

On one thing the Senator has been consistent.

Often acting as a one-man committee,

he has traveled far, interviewed many,

terrorized some,

accused civilian and military leaders

of the past administration of a great conspiracy

to hand over the country to Communism.

Well, may I say that I was extremely shocked

when I heard that Secretary Stevens

told two Army officers that they had to take part

in the cover-up of those who promoted

and coddled communists.

As I read each statement, I, uh...

thought of that quotation,

''On what meat doth this our Caesar feed?''

And upon what meat does Senator McCarthy feed?

Two of the staples of his diet are the investigations

protected by immunity and half-truths.

You... You attended Columbia University

- in the early '30s? - Harris: I did, Mr. Chairman.

Will you speak a little louder, sir?

Harris: I did, Mr. Chairman.

And were you expelled from Columbia?

Harris: I was suspended from classes on April 1st, 1932.

I was later reinstated.

And I resigned from the university.

McCarthy: And you resigned from the university.

Uh...

Did the Civil Liberties Union provide you with an attorney

at that time?

Harris: I had many offers of attorneys, and one of those

was from the American Civil Liberties Union. Yes.

The question is, did the Civil Liberties Union

supply you with an attorney?

Harris: They did supply an attorney.

- The answer is yes. - Harris: The answer is yes.

Uh, you know the Civil Liberties Union

has been listed as a front for and doing the work

of the Communist Party.

Harris: Mr. Chairman, this was 1932.

McCarthy: Yeah, I know this was 1932.

Do you know they have since had been listed

as a front for, and doing the work

of the Communist Party?

Harris: I do not know that they have been listed.

So, sir, no, I do not.

McCarthy: You don't know they have been listed?

Harris: I have heard that mentioned... or read that mentioned.

Now, you wrote a book in 1932. I'm going to ask you again.

At the time you wrote this book,

did you feel that professors should be given the right

to teach sophomores that marriage...

uh, let me quote... ''Should be cast out of our civilization

as antiquated and stupid religious phenomena?''

Was that your feeling at that time?

Harris: My feeling was that professors

should have the right to express

their considered opinions on any sub]ect,

whatever they were, sir.

McCarthy: I'm going to make you answer this.

I'll answer yes. But you put an implication on it.

And you feature this particular point out of a book,

which, of course is quite out of context,

does not give a proper impression

of the book as a whole.

The American public doesn't get an honest impression

- of even that book, bad as it is... - Don Hewitt: Back in five,

- four, three, two... - ...or what you're quoting from it.

The Reed Harris hearing illustrates

one of the Senator's techniques.

Twice he said the American Civil Liberties Union was listed

as a subversive front.

The Attorney General's list does not and never has listed

the ACLU as subversive,

nor has the FBI or any other federal government agency.

And the ACLU holds in its files

letters of commendation from President Truman,

President Eisenhower, and General MacArthur.

Earlier, the Senator asked,

"Upon what meat does this our Caesar feed?"

Had he looked three lines earlier

in Shakespeare's Caesar, he would have found this line,

which is not altogether inappropriate,

"The fault, dear Brutus,

is not in our stars, but in ourselves."

No one familiar with the history of this country can deny

that congressional committees are useful.

It is necessary to investigate before legislating,

but the line between investigating

and persecuting is a very fine one.

And the Junior Senator from Wisconsin

has stepped over it repeatedly.

We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty.

We must remember always that accusation is not proof,

and that conviction depends upon evidence

and due process of law.

We will not walk in fear, one of another.

We will not be driven by fear into an age of unreason,

if we dig deep in our history and our doctrine,

and remember that we are not descended from fearful men,

not from men who fear to write, to speak, to associate,

or to defend the causes that are,

for the moment, unpopular.

We proclaim ourselves as indeed we are the defenders of freedom,

wherever it continues to exist in the world,

but we cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home.

The actions of the Junior Senator

from Wisconsin have caused alarm and dismay

amongst our allies abroad,

and given considerable comfort to our enemies.

And whose fault is that?

Not really his.

He didn't create this situation of fear.

He merely exploited it, and rather successfully.

Cassius was right.

"The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars,

but in ourselves." Good night and good luck.

(audience cheering, applauding)

Don Hewitt: And we're out.

Good evening.

I don't know whether all of you have seen what I just saw,

but I want to associate myself and this program

with what Ed Murrow has just said

and say that I've never been prouder of CBS.

- And now the news... - You like a scotch?

I think everybody could use one.

- Edward: Yep. - (audience laughing)

Don Hollenbeck: Women have moved into another male domain.

- In 20 United States cities... - ♪ ßazz music playing) ♪

...they've proved themselves highly efficient

in parking and traffic control.

- (audience laughing) - (indistinct chatter)

Don Hollenbeck: And the trends to the greater employment

of traffic placement as women is rising. Many of the...

Edward: Fritz, what time is it?

Fred: Uh...

3:30. Early editions are out now.

Oh, I'm not worried about that.

(chuckles) No, of course not.

Hey, Shirt, honey, run down and pick up the early edition.

- Shirley: All of them? - All of them.

- Just get O'Brian. - (Shirley chuckles)

Shirley: (chuckles) All right. Uh... Watch my drink.

Yeah, I'll go with you, Shirley.

(audience laughing)

I'm gonna have to fire Joe so those two can date.

- Cigarette? - I quit.

Good time to quit.

Yeah, but what could you do?

Well, first we want to see if we have jobs tomorrow.

And if we still have jobs tomorrow,

then, uh, Tail Gunner Joe gets to return fire.

What's he gonna say?

Uh, he's gonna say we're, uh, a pinko organization

- with a leftist agenda. - We used his own words.

It's, uh...

Well, we do have a leftist agenda.

- (audience laughing) - I'm a pinko.

♪ (music concludes) ♪

A little too loud there, Charlie.

(audience laughing)

It's got awfully quiet there, didn't it?

We've got Annie Lee Moss.

We can have that together by next week if need be.

- Is that a whole show? - It's close.

- Listen, Ed... - (laughs)

...there's not gonna be a shortage of material on him.

What we have to do now is keep up the pressure

till his rebuttal...

and then move to Calcutta.

(audience laughing)

- Sure do miss radio. - You've got a face for radio.

(audience laughing)

That's what my wife keeps telling me.

Shirley: All right, here we go. We've got all of them.

Um, The Post, The Times.

- Who wrote it? - Shirley: Jack Gould.

(all exclaim)

"Edward R. Murrow's television program

on Senator Joseph R. McCarthy was an exciting and provocative

examination of the man and his methods.

It was crusading journalism

of high responsibility and courage.

For TV so often plagued by timidity and hesitation,

the program was a milestone that reflected

enlightened citizenship."

- (indistinct chatter) - He didn't like it.

Eddie: Yeah, what's this guy's beef, huh?

- Wait. Hold on. Hold on. - (overlapping chatter)

"The program was no less an indictment of those who wish

the problems posed by the Senator's tactics

and theatrics would just go away and leave them alone.

That was Mr. Murrow's and television's triumph,

and a very great one."

- Hear, hear! - (all cheer)

Fritz, send The New York Times a bottle of scotch.

I already did. How do you think we got that review?

(audience laughing)

- Palmer: What about The Post? - Edward: Hmm.

- Joe: It's pretty good. - staff member: Yeah. Yeah.

- What about O'Brian? - Shirley: The same.

- (all chuckle) - Shirley, what did O'Brian say?

Oh, I don't have it. Um, Joe, what about you?

Oh, well, I know. It's here somewhere.

Shirley: Okay, um...

hang on. l-- Okay. (clears throat) Jack O'Brian.

"We can't say we were surprised at Edward R. Murrow's

hate-McCarthy telecast last evening

when his explosively one-sided propaganda

edited with deviously clever selectivity

for McCarthy's march against Communism

was finished last evening.

By equally Machiavellian coincidence,

the following telecast featured

Murrow's PM protégé, 'Don Hollenbeck."'

(all exclaim)

"Uh, in an obviously gloating mood, Hollenbeck hoped

viewers had witnessed his patron's triumph

from and for the left."

Uh, and so on and so on.

Yeah, I guess O'Brian doesn't like scotch.

- It's okay, Shirley. Finish it. - Shirley, read The Post, huh?

- That's it, Don. It's just-- - Shirley, finish it.

- Shirley: That's it, Don. - Joe: Don, that's it.

Shirley.

Okay.

♪ (music fades) ♪

"The Columbia Broadcasting System

has been in a lengthy clean-house of lefties mood.

The worst offenders on lesser levels

have been quietly pushed out of the company.

Don Hollenbeck, a graduate of the demised pinko publication

'PM,' attacked conservative newspapers

with sly and slanted propaganda.

He then proceeded through an equally tilted review

of the day's events, with McCarthy dominating

his words, actions, attitude and camera..."

Uh. It's O'Brian.

I think I'll have that cigarette, Ed.

- (laughs) - Yep.

- I'm heading out. - Yeah.

Got a staff meeting in five hours.

Whoa! Whoa, it is late.

Fred: Hmm.

Do you-- Do you wanna share a cab?

Oh, uh, yeah.

- You headed downtown? - Yes.

But where do you live, Shirley?

- Oh, she lives downtown. - Yes.

- Hang in there, Don. - (audience laughing)

Don Hollenbeck: See ya, boys.

- Charlie: See ya. - Palmer: See ya, Ed, Don.

- I appreciate it. - Joe: It's a big day tomorrow.

Yeah. Today, you mean, huh?

Staff member: We're drinking. We're drinking?

- (clears throat) - (indistinct chatter)

Sorry I missed you the other night, Don.

I need to ask you something, Ed.

It's about O'Brian.

- O'Brian doesn't matter. - He's killing me.

He doesn't make a bit of difference in the news.

It's not just him. We have to let this guy have it.

We're not gonna go after O'Brian.

I'm not gonna take on McCarthy and Hearst.

I can't beat them both. Don't read the paper, Don.

Or don't read O'Brian, anyway.

No.

No. I guess not.

(sighs)

(sighs)

I wake up in the morning...

and I don't recognize anything.

I feel like I went to sleep three years ago

and somebody hijacked.

As if all the reasonable people took a plane to Europe

- and left us behind. - (audience laughing)

(chuckles)

(audience laughing, applauding)

(chuckles)

- Huh? - (speaks indistinctly)

- Uh, I was always... - (audience laughing)

I was always an optimist. Really.

I always thought things work out.

Half full.

Yeah. (chuckles)

I believe in this system, Don.

As disastrous as it can seem at times, I believe in it.

We designed it to fix it.

Madison built it into the Constitution,

for Christ's sake. It's a... (breathes deeply)

I was talking about my divorce.

- (audience laughing) - (chuckles) So was I.

(both laugh)

(audience laughing, applauding)

Well, I'm glad the forefathers understood

the term "dissolution of a union."

(chuckles) Sure, they had their difficulties

- with the opposite sex. - (chuckles)

- I'm talking about McCarthy. - (Edward laughs)

- (audience laughing) - So was I.

(chuckles)

(both chuckle)

Well, I thought I'd try.

Sorry, Don.

We never had this conversation, okay?

If it's okay with you, Senator.

(audience laughing)

Don't laugh. I've thought about it.

(breathes softly)

- (rooster crowing) - announcer: From Studio 41

in Grand Central Station, New York City...

- (typewriter clacking) - ...The Morning Show.

- How long for that new copy? - Just give me an hour.

Uh, it's gonna be an hour.

- You've been here all night? - Yeah. We got a deadline.

- Yeah... - We just got back from D.C.

McClellan just took an axe to McCarthy

at the Pentagon Hearing.

Charlie: He called McCarthy evil.

Palmer: Wait, who did?

Senator McClellan, sitting two seats

- down from McCarthy... - I've gotta get this

- to the land. - ...hands up, calls him evil.

- Wait, who's evil? - Did you get it on camera?

- Yeah, I think we did. - Wait, who is evil?

- Oh, Eddie... - I can hear you.

- (Palmer chuckles) - (audience laughing)

What are they doing there?

Uh, rewriting the Constitution.

They were there for the original.

- Yeah. - (audience laughing)

Uh, hold on, Joe. Palmer, can I talk to you for a minute?

- Palmer: Yeah. Sure, Fred. - Fred: Uh, just a second one.

- Fred. - Fred: Yeah?

Uh, fellas, uh, McCarthy's office just called.

- He wants equal time. - When?

- April 6th. - In studio?

He wants to film it in his office.

Who?

McCarthy.

Palmer: Jesus Christ.

They... They told me Buckley wanted to respond.

No. Uh...

It's McCarthy.

Yeah, but are they gonna let Charlie...

- What's he gonna say? - ...to shoot it?

(indistinct chatter)

I know what it's gonna be.

He's gonna come after me. It's the only thing he can do.

He's gonna bet that a Senator trumps a newsman.

- (scoffs) He'll lose. - (sighs)

Maybe.

(clicks tongue, sighs) Okay, fellas, here we go.

Joe, call Stanton and let him know.

- You got it. - John, uh, let's see

all the Eisenhower footage you've got.

We'll need to prep for his spots.

- Okay, Fred. Yup. - Um, Palmer.

Phil in Legal wants to have a word with you.

Yeah, the Eisenhower? Down here.

- Okay. Now? - Uh, yes, now is best.

Never very good news, is it? (chuckles)

Not often.

Female operator: (over phone) Operator.

Can you connect me with Phil in Legal?

Female operator: Right away.

(line beeps)

- Phil: Mr. Williams. - Guilty.

- (audience laughing) - Phil: Let's hope not.

There isn't a lot of time, so I'll be brief.

This network is under a tremendous amount of pressure.

- These stories aren't helping. - I... I understand.

Phil: I'm not sure you do.

There's a great deal of concern about your past positions.

- My wife's past position? - Phil: That's right.

HUAC has a file on you.

How do you know?

Phil: A file was sent to Mr. Paley yesterday.

Well, that's interesting timing.

Phil: Well, when you strike at a king...

Or a Junior Senator from Wisconsin?

Phil: CBS is prepared to make an offer.

- Uh-oh. - Phil: if you submit

your resignation, CBS will cover

any legal expenses you might incur on this subject.

- That's awfully kind of you. - Phil: No, it isn't.

- No, it isn't. - (audience laughing)

These guys don't play around. They're relentless.

They will cost you everything you have.

I understand.

Do you?

Palmer...

take the deal.

If these guys decide to call you in,

we will cut you loose.

And then no one will be there to help.

Not CBS, not Murrow.

No one.

Phil, you're a good guy.

And I... I appreciate that this is your job...

but what you're asking me to do, I could never do.

Phil: I understand.

It's funny how your life can be upended

- just for telling the truth. - And marrying a communist.

- Oh, yeah. There is that. - (audience laughing)

Be careful.

Yeah.

(typewriter clacking)

Ed. It's 28 minutes.

I could clip a little off the ends.

I think we have to leave it alone.

Very smart. No time for comment.

Came in ten minutes ago and we put it up,

saw the first couple of minutes...

- You're right. - He's coming after me.

Okay. Thanks.

Charlie, have you seen the latest polls?

The most trusted man in America is Milton Berle.

(audience laughing)

Maybe he should do the story.

Edward: Hey, Fred.

What say we grab a little dinner after the show?

- The 21 Club? - Sure.

Forty-five seconds to air.

Look...

there's nothing fun about this one.

You just gotta put your gloves down,

stick your chin out,

and just take it for a whole round.

- Next week's our round. - if I make it up off the mat.

- You will. - Don Hewitt: Thirty seconds.

Announcer: Because those rich, hard-working suds

are ivory mild,

99 and 44, 100% pure...

- (clears throat) - ...for all your dishes.

- Don Hewitt: Twenty seconds. - ...in the world

like wonderful Ivory Snow because it's the only soap

both ivory mild for kindness to your hands

and granulated for speed in your dishpan.

- Ten seconds. - ...for speedier dishwashing,

for snow-white hands.

- Wonderful. - Don Hewitt: In five,

four, three, two...

Good evening.

One month ago tonight we presented

our report on Senator Joseph R. McCarthy.

We labeled it as controversial. Most of that report

consisted of words and pictures of the Senator.

At the time, we told the Senator

that if he feels that we have done violence to his words

or pictures and he wishes to speak to answer himself,

an opportunity would be afforded him on this program.

The Senator sought that opportunity,

asked for a three-week delay because he said he was very busy

and wished adequate time to prepare his reply. We agreed.

We placed no restrictions on the method or manner

of the presentation of his reply,

and suggested that we would not take time

for comment on this program.

Here now is Senator Joseph R. McCarthy,

Junior Senator from Wisconsin.

Uh, good evening.

Mr. Edward R. Murrow, Educational Director

of the Columbia Broadcasting System,

devoted his program to an attack on the work

of the United States Senate Investigating Committee

and on me personally as its chairman.

Now, ordinarily... ordinarily, I would not take time out

from the important work at hand to answer Murrow.

However, in this case, I feel]ustified in doing so

because Murrow is a symbol,

the leader and the cleverest of the ]ackal pack,

which is always found at the throat

of anyone who dares to expose

individual communists and traitors.

I am compelled by the fact

to say to you that Mr. Edward R. Murrow,

as far back as 20 years ago

was engaged in propaganda for Communist causes.

For example, the Institute of International Education,

of which he was the acting director,

was chosen to act as a representative

by a Soviet agency

to do a ]ob which would normally be done

by the Russian Secret Police.

Now, Mr. Murrow, by his own admission,

was a member of the I*

that's the Industrial Workers of the World,

a terrorist organization cited as subversive

by an Attorney General of the United States.

Now, Mr. Murrow said on this program, and I quote,

he said, ''The actions of the Junior Senator

from Wisconsin...

have given considerable comfort to the enemy. ''

That is the language of our Statute of Treason,

- rather strong language. - (typewriter clacking)

If I am giving comfort to our enemies,

I ought not to be in the Senate.

If, on the other hand, Mr. Murrow is giving comfort

to our enemies, he ought not to be brought

into the homes of millions of Americans

by the Columbia Broadcasting System.

This is a question...

which can be resolved with very little difficulty...

I have to go to Philadelphia in the morning.

- What time is your train? - Uh, 8:00.

- Is Charlie going with you? - Mm-hmm.

(indistinct coughing)

Joe: I don't...

- (Shirley sighs) - ...uh... want to say...

what I'm about to say.

- Uh-oh. - Yeah.

You want a divorce?

(smacks lips) No. Do you?

Depends on what you're about to say.

(audience laughing)

I just keep having this nagging thought...

that we might be wrong.

- About what? - Well...

there are communists here.

- Yes. - (scoffs) They don't always

have our best interests at heart.

- Probably not. - Yeah.

- Does McCarthy? - Whoa!

The argument could be made...

it's for the greater good.

- That's one argument. - Well, Alger Hiss

- was... - Alger Hiss had a trial.

(scoffs) Alger Hiss faced his accusers.

- He went to jail. - That's right.

That's how this works.

(breathes softly)

So, we're not gonna look back and...

say we protected the wrong side?

- You're right, Joe. - Yeah?

- I want a divorce. - (audience laughing)

Yeah, wouldn't blame you.

When did you start smoking?

- Fifteen minutes ago. - (audience laughing)

Good evening.

Last week, Senator McCarthy appeared

on this program to correct any errors he might have thought

we made in our report of March 9th.

Since he made no reference to any statements of fact,

we must conclude that he found

- no errors of fact. - (audience laughing)

He proved, once again, that anyone

who exposes him, anyone who does not share

his hysterical disregard to decency and human dignity

and the rights guaranteed in the Constitution

must be either a communist or a fellow traveler.

I fully expected this treatment.

The Senator added this reporter's name

to a long list of individuals and institutions

that he has accused of serving the Communist cause.

His proposition is a very simple one.

Anyone who criticizes or opposes McCarthy's methods

must be a communist. And, if that be true,

there are an awful lot of communists in this country.

For the record, let us consider briefly

some of the Senator's charges.

He claimed, but offered no proof,

that I was a member of the Industrial Workers

of the World. That is false. I never was a member of the IWW.

Never applied for membership.

The Senator charged that Professor Harold Laski,

a British scholar and politician, dedicated a book to me.

That is true. He is dead. He was a socialist. I am not.

He was one of those civilized individuals

who didn't insist upon agreement with political principles

as a precondition for friendship or conversation.

I don't agree with his political ideas.

Laski, as he makes clear in the introduction,

dedicated the book to me

not because of political agreement,

but because he held my wartime broadcasts

from London in high regard, and the dedication so reads.

I believed 20 years ago, and I believe today,

that mature Americans can engage in conversation,

controversy, a clash of ideas with communists anywhere

in the world without becoming contaminated or converted.

I believe that our faith, our conviction,

our determination are stronger than theirs,

and that we can compete, and successfully,

not only in the area of bombs, but in the area of ideas.

I have worked for CBS for 19 years.

The company has subscribed fully to my integrity

as a broadcaster and as a loyal American.

I require no lectures

from the Junior Senator from Wisconsin.

Having searched my conscience and my files,

I cannot contend that I have always been right or wise.

But I have attempted to pursue the truth

with some diligence and to report it, even though,

as in this case, I had been warned in advance

that I would be subjected to the attentions

of Senator McCarthy.

We should hope to deal with matters

of more vital interest to the country next week.

Good night and good luck.

(audience cheering, applauding)

And we're out.

- ♪ (piano music playing) ♪ - singer: ♪ Use new White Rain ♪

♪ Shampoo tonight ♪

♪ And tomorrow your hair Will be sunshine bright ♪

- (indistinct chatter) - ♪ Sun, rain, sun, rain ♪

Good morning.

Ella: How are you feeling?

How am I... (laughs) How are you feeling?

What time did you leave last night?

Imani: She didn't leave last night.

I didn't leave this morning. (scoffs)

- JD: Uh, it's just this today. - Oh, just this.

- JD: Man. - (laughs)

(sings) ♪ Somewhere there's music ♪

♪ How faint the tune ♪

♪ Somewhere there's heaven How high the moon ♪

- ♪ (music stops) - Uh...

Uh, what time are we going till today?

Oh, uh... I'll... I'll get back to you in a minute.

(scoffs) We'll be here.

"In the last analysis, the Senator was perched

on the television high dive and all prepared

to make a resounding splash.

He jumped beautifully, but neglected to che... (scoffs)

...to check first where he was going to land."

- (audience laughing) - "lt must have been something

of a shock to discover that Mr. Murrow

had drained the water out of the pool."

(audience laughing)

- Charlie: Jack Gould. - Joe: The Times.

Yeah, The Times.

- (audience laughing) - He's a... hell of a writer.

We should hire him away from The Times.

Yeah. Well, uh, CBS has got a public opinion survey here

that, uh, Elmo Roper put together.

- Uh-oh. - Says,

"Thirty-three percent of all households

believe McCarthy proved you're a commie..."

Palmer: Only 33 percent?

Listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen.

The Senate is investigating McCarthy.

(audience cheering, applauding)

(all exclaim, cheer)

Oh, oh, you'll be all right, Palmer.

- You'll be all right. - Palmer!

Fritz, did you hear?

The Senate's investigating McCarthy.

We're a hit. We're up there with Howdy Doody.

Fred: Hold on, Ed.

(inaudible)

Ella: (singing) ♪ Somewhere there's music ♪

♪ How faint the tune ♪

♪ Somewhere there's heaven ♪

♪ How high the moon ♪

♪ There is no moon ♪

♪ Above ♪

♪ When love ♪

♪ Is far away too ♪

♪ Until it comes true ♪

♪ That you love me ♪

♪ As I love you ♪

One of the best programs I ever heard

was called CBS Views the Press.

A great many people liked it, some didn't.

But no one would say it was anything but honest.

It was the work of an honest reporter, Don Hollenbeck.

He also worked occasionally on See It Now.

He did the 11:00 pm news over some of these stations.

He'd been sick lately, and he died this morning.

The police said it was suicide.

Gas.

Not much of an obit...

but at least we got our facts straight,

and it was brief.

That's all Don Hollenbeck would have asked.

Good night... and good luck.

Ella: (singing) ♪ Until you will ♪

♪ How still my heart ♪

♪ How high the moon ♪

(indistinct chatter)

(sniffles)

Son of a bitch.

(telephone ringing)

John: (clears throat) Here.

See It Now.

Uh, yeah. Circulate that memo to 41.

Yeah. Circulate to Stanton. Circulate to Sig.

Um, everybody gets that memo. Got it?

(staff member clears throat)

- Yes. Well, Sunday, 4:30. - (indistinct chatter)

- Would you start in with me? - Yes. 4:30 Sunday. Yes.

Thank you, sir.

- John: All right. - (both speak indistinctly)

John: Yup. Okay. Thanks. Yup. Thank you.

(indistinct chatter)

Joe. Shirley.

Can I talk to you both? Let's use the editing room.

Millie, could you excuse us for a minute?

Shirley...

- how are you? - (audience laughing)

Fine, Fred.

Is there a-- Is there a problem, Fred?

I wanna ask you both a question... (chuckles)

...but I don't want you to answer it.

Just consider it.

I know you two are married.

Everyone knows. That's not my question.

(audience laughing)

In the next few weeks...

I have to lay a couple of people off.

We're making some significant cuts across the board.

I... I wanted you to know that because, uh...

(breathes deeply)

...if you have any intention in the near future

of starting a family...

I would say to you that you could save

someone else from being fired.

I'm...

asking you to consider making this decision a little easier.

(hesitates)

I don't need an answer now.

Just think about it.

(footsteps receding)

Well...

Mrs. Wershba...

(clicks tongue)

We're really going to miss you around here, Joe.

(audience laughing, applauding)

- Everybody knew. - (audience laughing)

Bill: Yeah. The problem isn't simply that you lost your sponsor.

Even with ALCOA,

- The fee is 50,000 dollars. - ...See It Now still loses money.

Last week's show we did for less than the fee.

We'll find another sponsor.

$64,000 Question brings in over 80,000 in sponsors,

and it costs a third of what you do.

Ed, I've got Tuesday night programming.

It's number one.

Because people just want to enjoy themselves.

They don't want a civics lecture.

- Well, what do you want, Bill? - Well, I don't want

a constant stomachache every time you take on a...

controversial subject.

That's a price you have to be willing to pay.

Careful, Ed.

Let's walk very carefully through these next few moments.

The content of what we're doing is more important

- than what some sponsor... - No, no, no.

- ...in Cincinnati, Ohio thinks. - What you're doing.

Not me, not CBS. You.

CBS News, See It Now, they all belong to you.

- Well, you wouldn't know it. - Is it credit that you want?

I never censored a single program.

- (scoffs) - I've kept our affiliates

who just wanted entertainment from us.

And I fought to keep our license

with the same politicians you were working to bring down.

And I never said no to you.

- Not once. - I would argue that we have

- done well by one another. - Bill: Never!

I would argue that this network is defined

by what the news department has accomplished.

I would also argue not saying "no"

is not the same as not censoring.

Really?

You should teach journalism.

So, let me ask you this.

Why is it that you always refer to him

as the Junior Senator from Wisconsin?

Because he's the Junior Senator from Wisconsin.

(audience laughing)

Not likely.

You taunt him, Ed, like a cat with a ball of string.

But now, you see, you've opened the door.

News with a dash of commentary.

What happens when it isn't Edward R. Murrow

minding the store?

(scoffs) I...

What do you wanna do, Bill?

(sighs) I'm gonna take your show from half an hour to an hour.

But it won't be a weekly program

and it won't be on Tuesday night.

- When would it be? - Sunday...

afternoon.

How many episodes?

Five.

(scoffs) Why don't you just fire me, Bill?

(smacks lips)

Well, Ed, I don't think it's what either of us wants.

You owe me five shows.

You won't like the subject matter.

No, probably not.

(audience laughing)

Fred: He wants me to lay a few people off.

Hmm.

I'm sure.

Let's do the next show

about the downfall of television.

(audience laughing)

So, if the Senate votes to censure McCarthy,

- what happens then? - (sighs)

He sits in the back row.

- They don't kick him out? - No, he stays.

He'll just... just lose all of his power.

He's already lost all of his power.

(scoffs) Right.

Now, they just teach him a lesson.

Yeah.

They're moving See It Now to Sunday afternoons.

Uh-oh.

(audience laughing)

- How many episodes? - Five.

(exhales)

(smacks lips) Well...

might as well go down swinging.

(audience laughing)

We'll do the story about the migrant farm workers.

- Make a couple of enemies. - (chuckles)

The most trusted man in America is Milton Berle.

(audience laughing)

See? Maybe you should have worn a dress.

- Hmm. - (audience laughing)

My legs are too skinny.

- Feel like a scotch? - Scotch is good.

Did you know that Joe and Shirley were married?

- Sure. - (indistinct chatter)

Edward: Did everyone know?

- Pretty much. - (audience laughing)

Oh, it's nothing.

I meant to do you no personal in]ury.

- Roy Cohn: No? - And if I did,

I beg your pardon.

Let us not assassinate this lad further, Senator.

- McCarthy: Let's... Let's... - Look, you've done enough.

Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last?

Have you left no sense of decency?

McCarthy: I know this hurts you,

- Mr. Welch. - I'll get the scotch.

Mr. Welch: I'll say it hurts.

McCarthy: If I may say, Mr. Chairman, as a point of personal privilege,

- I'd like to finish this. - Mr. Welch: Senator,

I think it hurts you too, sir.

McCarthy: I'd like to finish this.

Mr. McCarthy, I will not discuss this further with you.

You have sat within six feet of me and could have...

and could have asked me about Fred Fisher.

You have seen fit to bring it out,

and if there is a God in heaven, it will do neither you

nor your cause any good.

I will not discuss this further.

I will not ask, Mr. Cohn, any more witnesses.

You, Mr. Chairman, may, if you will,

call the next witness.

Chairman: Are there any questions to come

from the members of the chair?

(audience applauding)

(smacks lips) I begin by saying our history will be

what we make of it.

If we go on as we are,

then history will take its revenge

and retribution will not limp in catching up with us.

Just once in a while let us exalt the importance

of ideas and information.

Let us dream to the extent of saying

that on a given Sunday night, the time normally used

by Ed Sullivan, is given over to a clinical survey

on the state of American education.

And a week or two later, the time normally used

by Steve Allen...

is devoted to a thoroughgoing study

of American policies in the Middle East.

Would the corporate image of their respective sponsors

be damaged?

Would the stockholders rise up in their wrath and complain?

Would anything happen other than a few million people

would have received a little illumination on subjects

that may well determine the future of this country?

To those who say people wouldn't look,

they wouldn't be interested,

they're too complacent, indifferent...

insolent,

I can only reply there is...

in one reporter's opinion,

considerable evidence against that contention.

But even if they are right...

what have they got to lose?

Because, if they are right and these instruments are good

for nothing but to entertain, and amuse, and insulate...

then the tube is flickering now...

and we will soon see that the whole struggle is lost.

- (projector beeping) - (audience laughing, cheering)

Instructor: One, two, three, a change, a one, two, three...

Ladies and gentlemen, here he is, Fats Domino.

Mike: Good evening, I'm Mike Wallace.

This is a program of fact, news, information,

and observation.

Thank you very much.

Martin Luther King Jr: Now is the time to make real

the promises of democracy.

Our goal is not the victory of might...

Walter: From Dallas, Texas...

...but the vindication of right...

Walter: ...the flash, apparently official,

President Kennedy died at 1:oopm...

- Neil Armstrong: This is one... - ...Central Standard Time.

...small step for man, one giant leap...

Sock it to me, sock it to me, sock it to me, sock it to me?

Ladies and gentlemen, the Beatles. Bring them on.

News reporter 3: What happened here

at Kent State University defined a name.

Your president's a crook. Well, I'm not a crook.

Announcer: The space shuttle Challenger

- has exploded. - Ronald: Mr. Gorbachev,

tear down this wall!

It doesn't fit. If it doesn't fit, you must acquit.

They're supposed to be married in three weeks.

- What are you doing? - (screams, cheers)

- You are not the father. - Yeah!

Weapons of mass destruction...

Did the media get rolled by the Bush administration?

He's got him. He's got him. He's got him.

News reporter 1: Look at New York City.

This is at the World Trade Center.

(indistinct chatter)

What exactly happened on 9/11?

Conspiracy theories continue to saturate the internet.

Terrorist fit...

news reporter 2: He was wearing this tan...

For all you kids watching at home,

- Santa ]ust is White. - The big lie.

...on Dominion Voting...

...company is called Dominion...

Another in a series

- of stolen elections... - ♪ (dramatic music playing) ♪

President Biden has a photographic memory...

- He's totally focused. - He's very sharp at meetings.

- Forget about the evidence. - Alternative facts to that...

FBI operatives were organizing the attack on the...

The FBI had 26 of their people on the inside.

- ...false flag operation... - Obtain millions of dollars

and apologizing to the president-elect...

- (overlapping chatter) - ♪ (drum beat begins) ♪

man : Please raise your right hand and repeat after me.

♪ (drum beat concludes) ♪

(audience cheering, applauding)

(cheering and applause continue)

(applause dies down)

These instruments...

can teach,

they can illuminate,

they can even inspire.

But they can do so only to the extent that humans

are determined to use them to those ends.

Otherwise...

they're merely wires and lights in a box.

There is a great...

and perhaps decisive battle to be fought,

against ignorance,

intolerance,

indifference.

It's a fight for the very soul of this Republic.

And so the question is a very simple one...

not what power unchecked can do. We have seen that answer.

No.

The question is...

what are you prepared to do?

(breathes softly)

The fault, dear Brutus...

Good night...

and good luck.

(audience cheering, applauding)

♪ ßazz music plays) ♪

singer: ♪ Let's take a boat to Bermuda ♪

♪ Let's take a plane To Saint Paul ♪

♪ Let's grab a kayak to Quincy Or Nyack ♪

♪ Let's get away from it all ♪

♪ Let's take a trip In a trailer ♪

♪ No need to come back at all ♪

♪ Let's take a powder To Boston for chowder ♪

♪ Let's get away from it all ♪

♪ We'll travel 'round From town to town ♪

♪ We'll visit every state ♪

♪ I'll repeat that I love you sweet! ♪

♪ In all the forty-eight ♪

♪ Let's take a boat to Bermuda ♪

♪ This time We'll keep dig the Fall ♪

- ♪ Let's our hut, dear ♪ - ♪ Get out of our rut, dear ♪

♪ Let's get away from Let's fly away from ♪

♪ Let's get away from it all ♪

♪ (music concludes) ♪

(audience cheering, applauding)