Apollo 11 Moon Landing
By: Cale Hausman
Who, What, When, Where, Why
Who: United States Vs: Soviet Union
What: Apollo 11 was the spaceflight that landed the first two humans on the Moon. Mission commander Neil Armstrong and pilot Buzz Aldrin, both American, landed the lunar module Eagle.
When: July 20, 1969, at 20:18 UT
Where: Kennedy Space Center LC-39A
Why: In the 1960's the United States was in a Cold war with the Soviet Union. We wanted to be the first country to place a man on the moon, this was also known as the the Space Race.
Rocket Launch
The crew taking off on there mission.
Apollo Crew
Buzz Aldrin, Lance Armstrong, and Micheal Collins
First steps on Moon
Lance Armstrong taking the first steps on the moon.
Media Perspective #1
Apollo 11 was a huge success for the US. It allowed the United states to win the Space Race and potentially end the Cold War. The media portrayed Apollo 11 as a great accomplishment. The three astronauts were seen as national hero's, On August 13, they rode in parades in their honor in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. On the same evening in Los Angeles there was an official State Dinner to celebrate the flight, attended by members of Congress, 44 governors, the Chief Justice of the United States, and ambassadors from 83 nations at the Century Plaza Hotel. President Richard Nixon and Vice President Spiro T. Agnew honored each astronaut with a presentation of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The media saw the Apollo 11 mission as something ahead of our time.
Media Perspective #2
Not until the late 1970's did the media start to develop conspiracy theories that the Apollo program and the associated Moon landings were hoaxes staged by NASA with the aid of other organizations. The most notable claim is that the six manned landings (1969–72) were faked and that twelve Apollo astronauts did not actually walk on the Moon. NASA and others knowingly misled the public into believing the landings happened, by manufacturing, tampering with, or destroying evidence including photos, telemetry tapes, radio and TV transmissions, Moon rock samples, and even some key witnesses. The media started to portray this event as a fake, some believed it and some believed that it actually happened.
Media Bias
After the Apollo 11 mission was a success, the media was very influential. Since this was during a time of tension between the United States the media did everything they could to make the Apollo moon landing the biggest achievement in mankind history to spite the the Russians and make them feel like we beat them. This flight to the Moon received great scrutiny. “This is the greatest week in the history of the world since creation,” President Richard M. Nixon enthused upon greeting the Apollo 11 crew when they returned from the Moon. Even the president was influencing Apollo 11, if the president is making it seem like an amazing achievement then people are going to support the mission and see it as something amazing.
Criticism #1
Cultural criticism can be seen in the Apollo moon landing because during the 1960's and the cold war we wanted to beat the Russians in everything possible. Have us win the "Space Race" potentially made everyone see the United States as a more dominate county now that we were put a man on the moon. So it was part of the United States culture to beat the Russians.
Criticism #2
Feminist criticism can be seen in Apollo 11 because all the men got all the fame and glory but no one ever talks about, Margaret Hamilton. She was the reason we were able to put a man on the moon, developed on-board flight software for the Apollo space program. No one mentions her in the articles written about Apollo 11. She got no fame from her code that she wrote.
Apollo 11 Launch HD