McCarthy
McCarthy is a searing, powerful portrait of an American demagogue that explores how the institutions and dynamics of the American political system kept the junior senator from Wisconsin in a position of such tremendous power for more than four years. Based on rigorous reporting and extensive research, the film deftly interweaves the eye-witness testimony of people who knew McCarthy with archival footage, and the analysis of some of the most perceptive and well-respected historians of this period in American history. It tells a coherent, gripping account that clearly sets McCarthy apart from his predecessors and rivals. In the words of journalist Sam Tanenhaus: “Joe McCarthy was one figure who came along and turned anti-communism into something bigger and more dangerous than anyone else ever imagined. He was the demagogue of American anti-communism. He wasn’t the inventor of it.”
a WINTER PINK FILMS production for AMERICAN EXPERIENCE written, produced and directed by SHARON GRIMBERG edited by JON NEUBURGER co-producers JEN HICKEY and MELISSA MARTIN POLLARD original music by GARY LIONELLI cinematography JASON LONGO and JOHN BAYNARD “Nothing in McCarthy equals the impact of the implied questions that run like a luminous thread through these two hours.. It’s a testament to the fullness of this portrait that it provides answers.”
— The Wall Street Journal
“Outstanding…an effort PBS can be proud of… It is exactly the kind of historical production that can help keep us as a nation from repeating mistakes.”
—The Baltimore Sun