The House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) was first created in 1938 to investigate disloyalty and subversive organizations in the U.S. government.

In 1945, HUAC became a permanent committee and was reorganized and chaired by Texas Congressman Martin Dies, shifting the committee’s focus from government disloyalty to investigating Communist activities and accusations of espionage in a range of social, educational, and cultural institutions.

During its existence until 1975, HUAC made the news several times, particularly during its most famous investigations, the Hollywood Ten, which led to the blacklisting and imprisonment of Hollywood actors and directors, and the 1948 espionage hearing of former State Department official Alger Hiss. While some of the hearings were well publicized, many of them were closed hearings. Until recently, the records of closed hearings were unavailable to the public.

Unlike most congressional committees, HUAC functioned more like an investigative committee. Like a grand jury, the committee determined whether there was sufficient evidence on an individual or organization to warrant further investigation. HUAC was granted “unprecedented power” to subpoena individuals, hold witnesses in contempt of Congress, and press witnesses to give up names of ‘subversive’ individuals.

Yet a set of formal procedures for the conduct of its hearings was never established. HUAC’s goals were ad hoc, subjected to the political atmosphere of the moment or the mere whim of the committee chairman. Hearings were either open or closed, conducted by the entire committee or by ad hoc subcommittees, with strikingly different investigation techniques used to question witnesses. Likewise, HUAC’s view of itself was incredibly mixed, with internal dissent about the its establishment, role, and conduct.