Edward R. Murrow: Champion of Journalism

The 2005 film Good Night and Good Luck, focuses on the constant struggle between famed journalist Edward R. Murrow and the rise of Communist investigations imposed by the famed Wisconsin Senator Joseph McCarthy. Murrow, host of the CBS show See It Now and his staff at the CBS News Room strived to expose or question McCarthy's constant interrogations of individuals whom were deemed as "Communists." The film focuses on the case regarding Milo Radulovich, a lieutenant of the U.S. Air Force who was accused of having Communist ties and thus was forced to discharge from the reserve.

Murrow and his team were quick to defend Radulovich and stated that McCarthy's approach was unethical and unjust. They felt that McCarthy's evidence and claim was unsubstantial and weak. Murrow states that "“No one can terrorize a whole nation, unless we are all his accomplices.”After publicly exposing Radulovich's case on See It Now, Murrow and his staff were effective in the fact that Radulovich was "reinstated" back to the reserve, thus creating a significant impact.

In a democracy, it is believed that the media often serves as a "watchdog" to check facts and to provide accurate information to the general public. Murrow took the job of being a watch-dog seriously. He felt that the media has a responsibility and it should not always assume that the government is not prone in making mistakes or that it always "responsible." What is most admirable about Murrow and his news team was that despite the controversy surrounding the stories that had decided to broadcast, they were willing to take a risk and take a stand against a public figure. Although Murrow and his staff received heat and criticism about publicly taking a stand against McCarthy on See It Now, Murrow strived to educate his viewers on important events like McCarthyism which took place during the time period. He felt that it was his duty as a journalist to inform the public on current events. He felt that providing honest, accurate, and truthful facts to the general public was imperative and his chief duty as a journalist. Murrow states "To be persuasive we must be believable; to be believable we must be credible; credible we must be truthful.”

Like Murrow, I feel that it is crucial for the media to keep a "critical eye" on government officials to make sure that these same officials whom are in positions of power are doing their jobs effectively. Like Murrow once said: "We cannot make good news out of bad practice." Civilians too have the duty to be able to question and check on public leaders. George Clooney, director of the film states that “The script for this film was written 52 years ago by Edward R. Murrow, who taught us many valuable lessons about responsibility and always, always questioned authority, because without it authority often goes unchecked.” In conclusion, I feel that it safe to say that Edward R. Murrow does indeed deserve the title of educator, mentor, and champion of journalism.


Good Night and Good Luck,
Lauren