It captured world attention by broadcasting a Christmas message via shortwave radio from U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower through an on-board tape recorder.

This proposal was rejected because it would redirect resources from the ICBM's development, and it was also feared that the rocket would not be ready in time for the IGY.

[7] SCORE, a six-month effort, was the first endeavor of the then-new Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) headed by Roy Johnson, and proved that a small, highly focused and versatile research group with appropriate resources was an ideal method to achieve the scientific and technological advances necessary to succeed in the emerging global space race.

The result of the program, which used both real-time and store and forward techniques, was a major scientific breakthrough which proved that active communications satellites could provide a means of transmitting messages from one point to any other on Earth.

[11]: 236  The night before launch, however, Rear Adm. John E. Clark, deputy director of ARPA, was asked at a news conference whether he could deny that Eisenhower's voice was on the recorder.

The tape recorder was loaded with new material 28 times and failure finally was due to battery depletion.

[4] According to an official history of the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA),[15] SCORE was originally programmed to broadcast a voice message from Army Secretary Wilber M. Brucker.

This effort was successful, and accordingly SCORE's transmitted message from space to Earth was as follows: This is the President of the United States speaking.

My message is a simple one: Through this unique means I convey to you and to all mankind, America's wish for peace on Earth and goodwill toward men everywhere.

[4]The broadcast signal for Eisenhower's greeting was fairly weak, and only very sensitive radio receivers were able to detect it.