 The opinion of the American public and the news media was overwhelming in favor of conviction . Magazines , newspapers , and radio reported on the case heavily ; Time magazine featured the trial on its cover twice with stories titled " Communists : The Presence of Evil " and " Communists : The Little Commissar " ( referring to Eugene Dennis ) . Most American newspapers supported the prosecution , such as the New York World @-@ Telegram which reported that the Communist Party would soon be punished . The New York Times , in an editorial , felt that the trial was warranted and denied assertions of the Party that the trial was a provocation comparable to the Reichstag fire . The Christian Science Monitor took a more detached view in an editorial : " The outcome of the case will be watched by government and political parties around the world as to how the United States , as an outstanding exponent of democratic government , intends to share the benefits of its civil liberties and yet protect them if and when they appear to be abused by enemies from within " . 
