Cold War Liberals and the Birth of Dissent

No serious American magazine of the early 1950s championed the blend of politics that the future founders of Dissent espoused: unwavering opposition to both Stalinism and McCarthyism along with a commitment to the socialist ideal. Not having a comfortable home might make any group of like-minded intellectuals dream of its own magazine, but actually founding one—taking on the work, the responsibility, the headaches—usually requires more motivation. The future Dissenters had their motivation. Midway through the century that produced communism and fascism, they wanted to salvage a democratic socialist vision. And in the decade that produced the great American celebration of prosperity and freedom along with McCarthyism, they needed to take on the liberals.