The Cold War shaped 1950s American society and culture by creating a larger population, a stronger economy and a more persuasive media. By airing TV shows showing what an American family should look like, believe, and act like, American society became more and more persuaded into the “ideals” of society. The 1950s brought forth a growing US population. More and more Americans were getting married. These newlyweds also tended to be younger in age. Teenagers were getting married as young as 18 and 19. Of all 18 and 19 year olds, one third were already married. (“Life Magazine Identifies the New Teen-age Market, 1954,” Major Problems, 89). But instead of waiting a while to have children, they started right away. And with more families having children, it created a large surge in the population. This time of large population growth was called the baby boom. According to A Report on the Baby Boom, 1954, young married college graduates were having more children. Before, reproducing was set off more often or for a longer time. But in the 50s this was no longer true. Married couples with more education also became a norm. Starting in the 1940s, the rise of number of babies per graduate steadily rose (“A Report on the Baby Boom, 1954,” Major Problems, 84). There were many factors leading to the baby boom. The bettering of the economy was one. It was easier for young couples to set up their homes and ready them for a family. With a better economy, young couples were more likely to be able to afford homes. But changing attitudes towards marriage and families were the main reasons. “...each graduate must have an average of 2.1 children to be sure that one will live to grow up, marry and have children to carry on the chain unbroken” (“A Report on the Baby Boom, 1954,” Major Problems, 84). So what helped change attitudes? Tv. The first TV sitcoms showed American life. These sitcoms had the ideal family: one mom, one dad and at least two children, a boy and a girl. The dad was the head of the household and the mom was the homemaker. The children listened to the parents, and the end of the show always ended with a moral being taught.
The Life of Riley was one of those sitcoms. While the family was Jewish, which was not a norm, the storyline revolved around family life. They were middle class, average, communist hating Americans. People wanted to become like the Rileys. They wanted the ideal McCarthy family: two parents, two kids, all American and no ties to communism. With larger families came a larger economy. Younger couples were now spending money earlier for family life. With families growing bigger, more money was spent in order to feed and clothe their growing children. As their children grew older, and wanted for more, the family budget grew bigger. “To some people the version of a leggy adolescent happily squealing over the latest fancy present from Daddy is just another example of the way teen-agers are spoiled to death these days” (“Life Magazine Identifies the New Teen-age Market, 1954,” Major Problems, 88). But why were children being spoiled more in the 50s than earlier generations? It comes down to the same two reasons: families with more money and a TV. Once again, TV sitcoms shaped the modern family in the 50s. The show, Father Knows Best, showed an even better version of the American family life. The parents were able to buy anything their children wanted. Even if the children quickly tired of the toy, they simply bought them something new. They didn’t worry about money, simply about their children being happy. This type of “spoiling” carried over into real life. In 1959, teenagers owned 10 million phonographs, over a million TV sets, 13 million cameras (“Life Magazine Identifies the New Teen-age Market, 1954,” Major Problems, 88). Teenagers were spending money on types of things like beauty and entertainment. In 1958, over $20 million was spent on lipstick, $25 million on deodorants and $9 million on home perms. Teenagers also spent a lot of money on entertainment. Over $1.5 billion was spent on entertainment purposes in 1958. And $75 million was on single pop records (“Life Magazine Identifies the New Teen-age Market, 1954,” Major Problems, 89). This type of large spending helped the economy boom. The TV did more than just persuade Americans to convert into the ideal American large spending family. It persuaded them on how they should think about politics, politicians and government issues. Politicians were “sold” to Americans, and nuclear threat warnings were made to be a common part of everyday life (“Vance Packard Warns Against the “Hidden Persuaders,” 1957,” Major Problems, 95). With the TV being in many American homes, it was thought to be the best place to gain support for political ideas. “The national chairman of a political party indicated his merchandising approach to the election of 1956 by talking of his candidates as products to sell” (“Vance Packard Warns Against the “Hidden Persuaders,” 1957,” Major Problems, 95). By “selling” candidates to viewers, politicians were able to generate more votes than before. McCarthyism also was easier spread. Many hearings that featured Joe McCarthy were aired and widely watched (H.W. Brands, America Since 1945, 47). This helped spread the fear of communism and communist. It persuaded Americans that yes, communism is a real threat to American society. While McCarthyism and the threat of communism grew, so did the threat of a nuclear bomb. A Russian nuclear bomb threat was a widely known idea. But instead of making the bomb into a scary, never to be talked about threat, they turned it into a part of everyday life. They talked about it on tv, through sitcoms and news.
Children were also in the loop when it came to the bomb. Special cartoons were created to help children understand a nuclear bomb and what to do if one hit. Disney even created an episode for the show, Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color. The episode, Our Friend Atom, made nuclear threat a normal idea to children, and nothing to really be afraid of if they protected themselves. The TV was the main influence on American society during the Cold War. The ideas created during the Cold War found themselves thread into TV sitcoms as well as childrens shows. Because of this, culture changed. People were more willing to get married and have children, and then spend lots of many on those children. But overall, it made a threatening war into a normalized life.