Internally, the US government was also fearful of losing power within its nation. This is already evident in the opening of the documentary which showed the nuclear bomb testing in Bikini Atoll, where the American public were filled with skepticism. This led to Vice Admiral Blandy, Commander of the Bikini Test justifying himself, “the bomb will not start a chain reaction in the water, converting it all to gas and letting all the ships on all the oceans drop down to the bottom. It will not blow out the bottom of the sea and let all the water run down the hole. It will not destroy gravity.” As the documentary progresses, it can be inferred that the US government felt the threat of losing their people’s trust especially during the Korean War. The public responses fluctuated with the events occurred during the Korean War, with an initial 65% who responded positively to defending South Korea . However by the following January, nearly half of the citizens thought that the decision was a mistake, that is they disapproved of US’ involvement in the war. These findings – the fluctuating opinions and initial negative responses in US sending troops to fight the Korean War - have shown a lack of confidence towards the US government’s decisions from their citizens. This can be further substantiated by an interview conducted with a woman on the streets about her opinion of the Korean War and she responded by expressing her wish for the American troops to be back in their home country because she felt that “there would be no end to the situation”. The documentary also portrays the presence of mass hysteria because the filmmakers made a quick transition from the scene of Soviet Union’s first successful atomic bomb test to an authoritative figure reassuring the citizens, “This is no time for hysteria. This is no time for panic. This is a time for a calm reflection on the political and military implications on this transcendent event.” Another example from the documentary that could also illustrate the panic among the Americans was when Eisenhower addressed the nation. He first glorified America to be the most productive and richest nation in the world militarily, economically and intellectually. This emphasis of US’ position in the world implies the need to maintain the status quo. He have also added that the citizens should be worried about the current situation – that is, the development of Soviet Union’s first hydrogen bomb, which occurred shortly after Eisenhower became president – advancement in nuclear power was just a milestone in American history but have also added that instead, though they may have “developed scientifically”, they are unable
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Despite the possession of nuclear weapons, the Americans were still fearful for their own health and safety. This fear was successfully instilled into the citizens through propaganda films which also shaped their culture. Due to the citizens’ lack of knowledge about nuclear destruction and radioactivity during the development of the atomic bomb, the US government conditioned and prepared them for sudden nuclear attacks through spreading propaganda in various ways including authoritative figures calling for support in the use of atomic bombs against opposing armies, “duck and cover” technique, fallout shelters, etc. This spread of propaganda provoked and shaped the Americans beliefs into anticipating the threat of potential atomic bomb attacks. This fear is evident in a scene in the documentary where people on the streets were interviewed whether the hydrogen bomb should be built, and all interviewees all agreed to it. Furthermore, it is acknowledged that 85% of the Americans were worried about the effects of the bomb in one of the US Army films. The Americans built fallout shelters as instructed by the US government to protect themselves from nuclear attacks and radioactivity. This contrasted sharply with two professors’ (Professor Melman and Mario Salvadori) opinion on the shelters who characterized them to be “desperately futile” and that the shelters “push the Americans and Russians into thinking more of having a war”, diminishing the effects of the fallout shelter. Fear was also demonstrated in the documentary where the US army film mentioned about the “falsehoods” circulating about the radiation effects, which suggests that the people do know about the destructive effects of nuclear
Despite the possession of nuclear weapons, the Americans were still fearful for their own health and safety. This fear was successfully instilled into the citizens through propaganda films which also shaped their culture. Due to the citizens’ lack of knowledge about nuclear destruction and radioactivity during the development of the atomic bomb, the US government conditioned and prepared them for sudden nuclear attacks through spreading propaganda in various ways including authoritative figures calling for support in the use of atomic bombs against opposing armies, “duck and cover” technique, fallout shelters, etc. This spread of propaganda provoked and shaped the Americans beliefs into anticipating the threat of potential atomic bomb attacks. This fear is evident in a scene in the documentary where people on the streets were interviewed whether the hydrogen bomb should be built, and all interviewees all agreed to it. Furthermore, it is acknowledged that 85% of the Americans were worried about the effects of the bomb in one of the US Army films. The Americans built fallout shelters as instructed by the US government to protect themselves from nuclear attacks and radioactivity. This contrasted sharply with two professors’ (Professor Melman and Mario Salvadori) opinion on the shelters who characterized them to be “desperately futile” and that the shelters “push the Americans and Russians into thinking more of having a war”, diminishing the effects of the fallout shelter. Fear was also demonstrated in the documentary where the US army film mentioned about the “falsehoods” circulating about the radiation effects, which suggests that the people do know about the destructive effects of nuclear