New York Times Treaded the Thesis

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S. military officials and scientists to find out what kind of technology the Russians must have and why the U.S. did not have superior technology (Krock, "G.O.P. On Defensive on Issue of Security," 1957).

The press certainly wasn't afraid to expose the reality behind the U.S. government's shock and surprise at the Sputnik launch, and even went so far as to exploit many politician's feelings of vulnerability to the communist nation. In the government, behind the scenes there was much fear and finger pointing, but the official story in the news articles, at least initially, emphasized the scientific accomplishments and feats that the Russians had undertaken, and not the potential foreign policy and military repercussions of the event. The Russians were bold enough to launch a satellite unannounced, and the U.S. was fearful that they would engage the rest of the world from a similar perspective (Schwartz, "Soviet Exploits its New 'Sputnik' Diplomacy," 1957).

Both the period New York Times articles as well as the modern historians both agree that Sputnik's radio transmissions were a bitter sweet aspect of this issue. Scientists all over the world were tuning their radios to hear as the beeping aluminum orb flew overhead and broadcast a faint signal. This was the first time that something from another country had reached out and touched a citizen of another country indirectly (Dickson, 3). This both scared and excited the American public, as evidenced in the later New York Times articles as well as the contemporary sources.

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Conclusion

Overall, the New York Times articles and the contemporary historical sources both agreed that Sputnik triggered a near mass hysteria in America and across the globe. At first, people were excited that science and technology had finally come far enough to put a satellite into orbit. But their excitement soon turned to fear as politicians and government leaders realized that the Russians were one step ahead of the U.S. In the space and technology races, and that the rocket technology used to launch Sputnik into orbit represented a potential security threat. The articles were far less candid in their reporting of the Sputnik event. The press seemed eager to share the details and reveal the fear and confusion that existed in within the U.S. government at this time. I was astonished at the objective, honest approach the press took on the matter, and the straightforward way they divulged the information. Looking back from an historian's perspective, government officials were far more scared and concerned than they had publicly admitted, in an effort to keep the public as calm as possible.

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