Was the Real Robert Oppenheimer a Communist?

Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, a film about the “father of the atom bomb” is one of the summer’s most successful movies. With Oppenheimer, Nolan delivered the cinematic artistry we’ve come to expect from him. However, a strong theme in the movie is that Oppenheimer was a victim of delusional anti-communists who wrongfully believed the scientist was a communist. In this episode, we look at multiple sources to determine if Robert Oppenheimer was a communist, we discuss the “Red Scare” era, and touch on the wrath The John Birch Society incurred for raising the alarm about communist influence over U.S. policy.