Good night, and good luck

I watched “Good Night, and Good Luck” last night and enjoyed myself, although I must say I felt a bit let down. The movie was very intriguing for many reasons, but most importantly because it showed me what good journalism can accomplish. However, I never got the true feeling that Murrows “took on” McCarthy so to speak. To me it seemed more like several well placed editorial pieces that helped to influence popular opinion on the matter, and vocalize the views of the silent majority in America. Regardless, what Murrows did was unheard of at the time, to the best of my knowledge anyway, and he did much to secure and bring American back to its people, for whatever that is worth. His views of television as a medium not only to entertain but to inform still rings true in today’s fast paced MTV world. Perhaps the most telling statement he made in the movie was when he mentioned his fears that media, especially news media, would become nothing more than a propaganda outlet for corporate conglomerates and the government.

While watching “Good Night, and Good Luck” I kept thinking about the movie “Network” which I felt did a better job of portraying just how evil television could be. However, these are two movies that were made in two very different time periods. One documents historical events, while another portrays fictional events of a likely future. “Network,” a movie made in the seventies, predicted much of what American media today has become, a very powerful tool that is in existence solely to provide an avenue for someone to sell you something. Although I find myself very often wanting to stand up, stick my head out of the window and say, “I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take it anymore!”

Perhaps my issues with “Good Night, and Good Luck” were because I was expecting something that the movie never intended to be, a real stick it to the man story. It wasn’t about showing the epic struggle about what’s right in the world. It was about men who weren’t scared to take a stand for what they believed in. Murrows didn’t take McCarthy down, McCarthy took himself down, Murrows just helped prevent the extent of some of the damage McCarthy was causing. It’s a good movie, and I recommend it to anyone who would like to see what media was like post World War 2.

-Steve