Part 4: Chapter 11, Party Line Summary and Analysis

Sputnik gave the Russians tremendous propaganda value. The satellite gave the Soviets the ICBM that they claimed to have and gave them superiority in that area of science. Sputnik also showed that their interests in space were peaceful under the leadership of Khrushchev. The Soviets proved that they had the science and technology and that they could use it. The Soviets relied heavily on misinformation following the launch of Sputnik. They had the Americans believing that there was really a shift in the balance of power. The propaganda value of the launch was evident in the Soviets using the launch to claim that socialism was superior to capitalism. All of the science and technology required for the launch were the products of socialism.

The Soviets claimed they were countering the American nuclear monopoly. A month...