Podcast
Questions and Answers
What was Alger Hiss accused of during the HUAC hearing?
What was Alger Hiss accused of during the HUAC hearing?
What was the outcome of Alger Hiss's trial in 1949?
What was the outcome of Alger Hiss's trial in 1949?
Who named the Rosenbergs as spies during the investigation?
Who named the Rosenbergs as spies during the investigation?
What significant event contributed to the increase of anti-communist sentiment in the US in the late 1940s?
What significant event contributed to the increase of anti-communist sentiment in the US in the late 1940s?
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What was the result of the trial of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg?
What was the result of the trial of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg?
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What did the McCarran Internal Security Act of 1950 require?
What did the McCarran Internal Security Act of 1950 require?
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Who was a notable member of HUAC who claimed Hiss was leaking information?
Who was a notable member of HUAC who claimed Hiss was leaking information?
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What prompted the large protests in Hollywood regarding the Rosenbergs?
What prompted the large protests in Hollywood regarding the Rosenbergs?
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Study Notes
The Red Scare
- The period of intense anti-communist feelings in the USA during the 1940s and 1950s is known as the Red Scare.
- Alger Hiss, a former State Department official, was accused of being a communist in 1948.
- Hiss was named by HUAC (House Un-American Activities Committee) as having been a member of a communist group.
- Hiss denied being a communist.
- Hiss was convicted in 1950 of perjury.
- Klaus Fuchs was arrested for passing information about the atomic bomb to the Soviet Union
- He confessed and was sentenced to 14 years in prison.
- Fuchs named David Greenglass, who implicated Ethel and Julius Rosenberg.
- Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were accused of spying and were found guilty and executed in 1953.
- Many Hollywood figures were accused of communist ties.
- Many Hollywood actors and other people were accused of being communists.
- The Hollywood Ten refused to testify before HUAC and were sentenced to prison.
- There was substantial evidence of a communist conspiracy
- The Soviet Union's successful atomic bomb test in 1950 increased fears of communist infiltration, leading to passage of the McCarran Internal Security Act to mandate registration of communist organizations.
The Rosenberg Case
- In March 1951, Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were accused of spying for the Soviet Union.
- They were convicted of sharing nuclear secrets and were executed in 1953.
- The evidence against them was deemed weak by some commentators.
- The case was controversial, sparking large protests against their sentencing.
The Hiss Case
- HUAC, an investigative committee, accused Alger Hiss of being a communist sympathizer
- Hiss was convicted of perjury, not of being a communist.
- The case led to increased suspicion and paranoia about communists in government.
- Hiss trial publicized after Soviet successfully tested atomic bomb, increasing US fears.
- The Hiss case fuelled fears of communists in the USA, bolstering support for anti-communist policies.
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Description
Test your knowledge on the Red Scare, a period marked by intense anti-communism in the USA during the 1940s and 1950s. This quiz covers key events, figures like Alger Hiss and the Rosenbergs, and the impact on Hollywood. Explore the political climate of this tumultuous era.
