The Red Scare, Politics, and the Federal Communications Commission, 1941-1960

(Hardback)

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

The Red Scare at the FCC started when James Lawrence Fly led the agency in many important decisions that were inspired by the New Deal. These decisions outraged both the broadcasting industry and politically conservative legislators, causing them to accuse the FCC of Communist sympathies. This book analyzes the political transition taken by the FCC that turned it into an agency that fully participated in the Red Scare of the 1950s. This book analyzes many significant FCC cases and policies that have never been considered within the context of New Deal policymaking or its impact. This work is the first to look into the impact of the Red Scare on an executive agency. Its combination of new archival and behind-the- scenes information makes this book a great addition to the growing body of research on media history and regulation.

Reviews

[A]dds to the far too thin shelf of historical books about the FCC....Interesting and chilling reading, this is an example of what we need more of-analytical surveys of the FCC and its impact over the seven decades of its existence.-Communication Booknotes Quarterly
The author's assessment of the motivating force and impact of McCarthyism deserves attention. In particular, her chapter on the FCC's persecution of Edward Lamb, a prolabor advocate and radio broadcaster, provides riveting reading and an appropriate antidote to those who would cast McCarthyism as a benign episode in our recent past. Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above.-Choice
"Adds to the far too thin shelf of historical books about the FCC....Interesting and chilling reading, this is an example of what we need more of-analytical surveys of the FCC and its impact over the seven decades of its existence."-Communication Booknotes Quarterly
"[A]dds to the far too thin shelf of historical books about the FCC....Interesting and chilling reading, this is an example of what we need more of-analytical surveys of the FCC and its impact over the seven decades of its existence."-Communication Booknotes Quarterly
"The author's assessment of the motivating force and impact of McCarthyism deserves attention. In particular, her chapter on the FCC's persecution of Edward Lamb, a prolabor advocate and radio broadcaster, provides riveting reading and an appropriate antidote to those who would cast McCarthyism as a benign episode in our recent past. Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above."-Choice

Author Bio

SUSAN L BRINSON received her Ph.D. in 1990 from the University of Missouri, Columbia. Her research interests include broadcasting history and regulation and media criticism. She is particularly interested in the various ways in which the media is used to maintain the hegemonic power of the elite.