Dank_Journey_of_Journalism_Final

.docx

School

New York University *

*We aren’t endorsed by this school

Course

MISC

Subject

Arts Humanities

Date

Jan 9, 2024

Type

docx

Pages

Uploaded by erikaforcher

Dawn Dank 12/11/21 dtd7797@nyu.edu The Journey of Journalism Final Question 1(a): cultural movement In the twentieth century, writers who wrote with and utilized pre-World War I reform and exposé writing emerged. They were famous for providing extremely detailed, accurate, and unbiased accounts of various political, social, or economic examples of corruption within society. This movement of journalists, known as the “muckrakers” emerged following the introduction of yellow journalism in the late 19th century. They helped raise the appetite of Americans for investigative news and media. These journalists differed from those of the past because a large portion of their work was primarily scandal based. The main switch from “personal” and “yellow journalism” to Muckraking was that Muckrakers did not have the same lousy and negative association due to the tactics they employed. This cultural movement, led by remarkable journalists like Ida Tarbell and Lincoln Steffens, wrote articles on trusts, the municipal government, and labor. Their work, which resulted in improved social and environmental conditions within the United States, made them a very necessary and impactful social movement. Ida Tarbell, as a great example, exposed unfair practices in the Standard Oil Company, showing how writers could uncover unfair practices by monopolies and in return protect the American public. The work of Muckrakers also had immediate effects on society as they were the mass media of the time. They are given credit for providing the spark that would ignite the progressive movement. The importance of the press and media in forming progressive action, which they highlighted, remains today. Movements such as “Me Too” and “Black Lives Matter” are only two of the many modern-day examples of this. During their time of popularity, the primary source of news was newspapers and magazines. After publishing their work within the paper, they would usually release books, two examples being Upton 1

Sinclair’s “The Jungle” and Lincoln Steffens’s “The Shame of Cities”. Lincoln investigated municipal governments and their corruption and Upton exposed the horrid working conditions and sanitary issues within the meatpacking industry. Both of their work gave fuel to the progressive movement and Upton’s resulted in the passing of legislation which is still in effect today. Muckrakers also used photos within their work, which captured the eyes of their audience and showed the deplorable conditions they uncovered. They were highly successful in impacting how we obtain and read the news today. They exposed the truth and strived to improve social conditions, which motivated individuals by showing them their potential. Muckrakers famously wrote for large scale magazines, and some were closely related to the government, seen with Baker and President Roosevelt. They had the power to take minor hidden issues and convert them into national interests. This gave America its current “welfare mentality”, a strive to have programs to help those who cannot support themselves and to correct the wrongs which we see within our society . Despite their many benefits, the work of Muckrakers was not all positive; it also resulted in limitations in the news and media. They were relentless in exposing confidential information, but the boundary needed would lie between what should be shared and what should remain private information. By attacking individuals, which is often apparent in modern pop-culture magazines, investigative journalists framed very personal issues publicly, which is now frowned upon although popular with the curious public. Journalists may not have the same urgent matters to uncover, such as corruption and societal issues, but the exact strategies have lasted centuries and still appear today. The Muckrakers may have experienced a demise recently, but their effect lies in their role in history. They opened the floor for a progressive era of social reform, highlighted the possible relationship between the government and the press, and demonstrated to the public the role that the media could play in inspiring societal change. Question 1(b): technological development 2

Before technology, it was a lengthy and challenging process to send messages to distant places. The main sources of news and media that were available had to be printed and copied. These newspapers and magazines had to be sent and delivered to faraway places, and the process of making them was not simple. After something would occur, it would take weeks or even months to receive information due to travel, resulting in a delay and lack of immediacy. This made it difficult for populations to communicate, stay connected, and develop national culture and identity. Before the inventions of later decades, the world was isolated from its geography. The way people received information was the same as when the printing press was first invented years prior. However, this was forever changed in the 18th and 19th centuries with the invention of the telegraph. The telegraph used Samuel Morse’s creation, the Morse code, to convey messages. This worked with individuals who would shortly stop the flow of electricity through communication wires. This advancement, among some others, was arguably one of the most significant historical developments in communication. With the telegraph, information flowed almost immediately; a message from New York to Europe could be received in mere minutes. For the first time, the world became far more connected and smaller, and it was easier to receive relevant news. The telegraph changed how humans would convey and tell the information. After its introduction, other primary sources of communication emerged in the following decades, including the radio, telephone, email, and the internet. Although the significance of the telegraph lies heavily in its role as a steppingstone to future developments in technology and communication, one of its more immediate effects was its impact on businesses, social life, and politics. There were both positives and negatives to the telegraph in this way. It helped lessen the likelihood of antagonistic relationships between nations due to increased communication. Countries could communicate more effortlessly, and it would become much more challenging to have misinterpretations. Nations could reach deals and agreements, and collaboration could take place. However, there were also some unpredicted effects. One of these was the beginning of the end of newspapers. Following the introduction of wired telegraphs, what would soon follow would be the development of the radio, referred to as the “wireless telegraph”. The written newspaper was far less attractive to the public following these 3

later inventions. A figure from Pew Research presents this decline in the circulation of newspapers, and the amount has almost halved from being over 40 million to only 25 million today over the course of just a couple decades. With the later production of new communication sources, the people could access immediate news and information, which had no comparable substitutes. The telegraph made the US far more united, developing a shared mind and identity. Without the creation of the telegraph, there would have been no development of non-news media. The videos we use to educate ourselves, the internet we use to obtain information, and news channels that provide worldwide information and events would not exist. When we look at all the means of communication and media sources readily available at our fingertips, it is easy to see the tremendous beneficial impact that the telegraph has had on the news and the spread of information. Question 1(c): historical event There have been many historical events which have greatly influenced the news and how information is obtained and spread. We started our journey with printed news and difficulties in sharing messages across geological barriers, however, with technological developments and industrialization, the media industry began to change forms. This is demonstrated in various events which have occurred throughout American history, and one of arguably the most significant of these events was the beginning of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “fireside chats”. When Roosevelt became president, the golden age of the radio had already begun. Radio had begun overtaking other media as a main source of information and this was largely due to the lack of money and skills needed to partake in hearing the news vs. reading it. Roosevelt, unlike the many presidents before him, was presented with the amazing opportunity to speak to the public and have his own words not filtered through the press, there was no room for modified or misquoted information. He became the first president to harness the radio and its immense political power. When he entered office in 1933, he was left with the fears associated with the fall of the American economy, and he needed to urge 4

Your preview ends here

Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version

Access to all documents
Unlimited textbook solutions
24/7 expert homework help