The Yellow Press And Gilded Age Journalism

"Most notable among Hearst's competitors was The World, owned and managed by a Jewish immigrant named Joseph Pulitzer. In The Yellow Journalism, David R. Spencer describes how the evolving culture of Victorian journalism was shaped by the Yellow Press. He details how these two papers and others exploited scandal, corruption, and crime among New York's most influential citizens and its most desperate inhabitants - a policy that made this "journalism of action" remarkably effective, not just as a commercial force but also as an advocate for the city's poor and defenseless."--BOOK JACKET.

American newspapers redefined journalism after the Civil War by breaking away from the editorial and financial control of the Democratic and Republican parties. Smythe chronicles the rise of the New Journalism, where pegging newspaper sales to market forces was the cost of editorial independence. Successful papers in post-bellum America thrived by catering to a mass audience, which increased their circulations and raised their advertising revenues. Still active politically, independent editors now sought to influence their readers' opinions themselves rather than serve as conduits for the party line.

This offers a detailed and long-awaited reassessment of one of the most maligned periods in American journalism—the era of the yellow press. The study challenges and dismantles several prominent myths about the genre, finding that the yellow press did not foment—could not have fomented—the Spanish-American War in 1898, contrary to the arguments of many media historians. The study presents extensive evidence showing that the famous exchange of telegrams between the artist Frederic Remington and newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst—in which Hearst is said to have vowed to furnish the war with Spain—almost certainly never took place. The study also presents the results of a systematic content analysis of seven leading U. S. newspapers at 10 year intervals throughout the 20th century and finds that some distinguishing features of the yellow press live on in American journalism. The yellow press period in American journalism history has produced many powerful and enduring myths-almost none of them true. This study explores these legends, presenting extensive evidence that: • The yellow press did not foment-could not have fomented-the Spanish-American War in 1898, contrary of the arguments of many media historians • The famous exchange of telegrams between the artist Frederic Remington and newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst-in which Hearst is said to have vowed to furnish the war with Spain-almost certainly never took place • The readership of the yellow press was not confined to immigrants and people having an uncertain command of English, as many media historians maintain The study also presents the results of a detailed content analysis of seven leading U.S. newspapers at 10-year intervals, from 1899 to 1999. The content analysis—which included the Denver Post, Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Raleigh News and Observer, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, San Francisco Examine and Washington Post—reveal that some elements characteristic of yellow journalism have been generally adopted by leading U. S. newspapers. This critical assessment encourages a more precise understanding of the history of yellow journalism, appealing to scholars of American journalism, journalism history, and practicing journalists.

The waning years of the nineteenth century saw the emergence of a new kind of journalism in the United States, one that not only challenged government and corporate power, but also turned to sordid crimes and scandals for much of its material. Sensational, shocking, and lurid, this new style of reporting came to be known as "yellow journalism." The trend influenced newspapers across the country, and its role in building public support for the Spanish-American War has become the stuff of legend. The supplemental features of this book, including striking photographs, primary sources, and informative sidebars, trace the development of yellow journalism and demonstrate its impact today.

After the War presents a panoramic view of social, political, and economic change in post-Civil War America by examining its journalism, from coverage of politics and Reconstruction to sensational reporting and images of the American people. The changes in America during this time were so dramatic that they transformed the social structure of the country and the nature of journalism. By the 1870s and 1880s, new kinds of daily newspapers had developed. New Journalism eventually gave rise to Yellow Journalism, resulting in big-city newspapers that were increasingly sensationalistic, entertaining, and designed to attract everyone. The images of the nation’s people as seen through journalistic eyes, from coverage of immigrants to stories about African American "Black fiends" and Native American "savages," tell a vibrant story that will engage scholars and students of history, journalism, and media studies.

Explains yellow journalism and includes material on Joseph Pulitzer, William Randolph Hearst, Nellie Bly, and Richard Harding Davis.

Seminar paper from the year 2017 in the subject History - America, grade: 1,0, , course: American War Experience, language: English, abstract: This work examines in how far yellow journalism served as a warmonger in the Spanish-American War. It starts with an overview of yellow journalism and focuses on its origin, the rivalry between the two most influential editors of that era, William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pulitzer. After that, the author describes the benefits of American military intervention in the conflict between Cuba and Spain. Then, events like the explosion of the USS Maine and how they were presented to the American population in the media, more specifically in the newspapers, are described. This will lead to the penultimate part, in which the outbreak of the war is studied. To conclude, the author sums up the impact of yellow journalism on the Spanish–American War in contrast to the other presented significant causes. We are now in the 21st century and confronted with a wider variety of media than ever before consisting not only of newspapers and radio, but also of television and the internet. This increases the possibilities of shaping public opinion for the purpose of either financial profit or political gain. In this context the term post-truth has emerged and was even declared. Such a term could also have been used more than a century ago in order to describe the phenomenon treated in this work: yellow journalism. However, at that time, the only source of information for people to rely on was the newspaper. Accordingly, its significance was even greater.

The amazing story behind the greatest newspapermen to ever live—Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst—lies primarily hidden with their reporters who were in the field. They risked their lives in Cuba as the country grappled for independence simply to “get the story” and write what were not always the most accurate accounts, but were definitely the best—anything to sell papers. Reporters like Harry Scovel, Stephen Crane, Cora Taylor, Richard Harding Davis, and James Creelman, among others, put themselves in danger every day just for the news. The Yellow Kids is an adventure story packed with engaging characters, witticisms, humor, and adversity, to reveal that the “yellow” found in journalism was often an extra ingredient applied by editors and publishers in New York.