How Did The Yellow Journalism Affect The Spanish-American War?

Although there are many reasons why the Spanish-American war took place, the most important was Spain's resentment of Cuba's desire to also become an independent nation. Since Cuba was one of Spain's last territories, they were unwilling to allow independence. As a result, conflict between the two parties erupted. Since Cuba was smaller and less equipped to fight than Spain, their economy took a tumble. Due to the fact that the United States had a great deal of money invested in Cuba's sugar resources, many Americans felt the need to wage war. Additionally, there were separate events that caused anger to American Citizens. One such event was the destruction of a U.S. ship used to protect the American citizens in Cuba. Although the ship's

The Spanish American War was caused by many occasions. America strongly supported Cuba and disputed Spain’s actions. The main causes of The Spanish American war was the yellow journalism, the blowing up of “The maine”, and the de lome letter. This essay will be discussing the causes and effects of the Spanish American War.

America’s support for the ongoing struggle by Cubans and Filipinos against Spanish rule and the explosion of the battleship U.S.S. Maine in Havana Harbor are the major influences that led to the Spanish-American War. The Spanish-American War was a conflict between Spain and the United States in 1898. As Cuba was controlled by territorial expansion by the Spanish, Cubans fight for independence from Spain will arise. Cubans fight for Independence from Spain is what brought the U.S to intervene.

The objective of many special interst groups through the use of “Yellow Journalism was to gain the attention of the American people by doing whatever possible. They sent columnist to cuba usually under deep cover, which meant they had to rely on second and third hand information which usually resulted in the stories written being overly exaggerated. The stories that were written caused the World to grow concerned about the situation in Cuba by the Spanish

While public tensions before August 1898 were surely high, nothing turned the public against Spain like the tragic blowing up of the USS Maine in Havana Harbor. The lives of 260 American officers and men were lost. The yellow press and American investigators quickly blamed spanish officials in Cuba for the mysterious wreck. Although it is extremely unlikely that the spanish had anything to do with the Maine’s sinking, the War-Mad American public accepted this conclusion out of rage, overwhelmingly persuading President Mckinley to begin the war. McKinley personally did not want to fight a war against Spain, for he had seen enough bloodshed as a General in the Civil War. But the public, encouraged by the Cuban patriotic cause, yellow journalism, and the sinking of the Maine, clamored for a war. Finally, President McKinley yielded and gave the people what they wanted. He believed that the people should rule, even if they don’t know what’s best for themselves. Public pressure was the main reason we went to war with Spain, and the biggest cultivator of public unrest was the blowing up of “The Maine”.

this time many battles were occurred in different cities. We lost many people but gained a great area of land. For example three important events are the battle of Palo Alto, the battle of Buena Vista and the Treaty Of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The Mexican American War is important in American history because it further changed our borders forever. Three important players in the Mexican American War were Zachary Taylor, James K. Polk and Santa Anna. Each of them played an important part in the war. A few days before the Treaty Of Guadalupe, gold was discovered in California which made the Americans want to come farther west more. The battle of Palo Alto took place May 8 of 1846, the battle of Buena Vista took place February 22 of 1847 and the Treaty Of Guadalupe

Yellow Journalism was seen all over the newspapers in the late 19th century and was one of the causes of why McKinley chose to go to war. The San Francisco Call was one of those newspaper spreading rumors and false claims to the people. They mislead many people to support the cause in Cuba, adding to McKinley’s pressure of whether to get involved or not. They printed an article entitled “Proof of the treachery of Gen. Weyler” on April 12th, 1898. This newspaper article claimed that the sinking of the Maine, which caused great controversy over the situation in Cuba, was the work of none other than General Weyler, American’s biggest enemy at the moment. As it was clear, probably at that time and definitely now, the Maine wasn’t destroyed by the Spanish. Like this example and many others, tension rose both in the White House and with the American people because they were fed lies that people wanted to believe. Kagan believes that this “yellow journalism” didn’t really affect McKinley’s decision to intervene in Cuba as he states, “The pressure on the McKinley administration to take some action in Cuba was not manufactured by publishers looking for a war to sell newspapers. It was the product of Cuban reality and American outrage over actual human suffering.” Although he is right

There were a plethora of important events that took place that prompted the beginning of The Spanish American war. The war was officially started in 1898, bringing joy to the citizens of America and dismay to then president William Mckinley. Before the war, Cuba had been fighting for independence from Spain. The Cuban’s had already lost in the ten year war earlier, which had been fought to gain their independence from Spain. In the state's, newspapers and other media sources were greatly exaggerating the horrors and atrocities being

To protect the interests of the nation, the United States sent the USS Maine into Havana Harbor, but on February 15, 1898, the unthinkable happened. The battleship exploded, killing 260 members of the crew. Without a thorough investigation, the U.S. Naval Court of Inquiry stated the explosion was caused by Spain. Doubt from the public was virtually absent and the United States declared war on Spain, beginning the Spanish-American War. The war resulted in a swift American victory, leading to the addition of multiple territories. Although the explosion is now known to have been caused by an internal fire, it caused American intervention and imperialism in both Latin America and islands in the Pacific

Nationalism was another major factor in declaring war against Spain. Nationalism emerged in the United States and all of its people seemed to support the war. The “yellow press” printed multiple stories of scandals, including the explosion of the Maine in the Havana harbor. The yellow press printed that the Spanish were responsible for this action, which led to the slogan “Remember the Maine.” Nationalism and pride surged within the United States and war became imminent. The “rough riders,” who were volunteers from the United States, invaded the Santiago harbor in order to drive out Spanish ships. They paved the way for the American army and forced Spain to sign an armistice. After the war was over and the Cubans were free, The Platt Amendment was passed. It provided that Cuba had to state in its own constitution that the US might intervene with troops in Cuba in order to restore order and to provide mutual protection. It also promised to sell or lease naval stations to the US. The doctrine of Manifest Destiny also played a major part in the war. The US wanted to expand its country and spread its Anglo-Saxon culture. Imperialism was also part of this objective.

Cuba, a Spanish colony, had been in rebellion since 1895. The brutal Spanish response turned American sympathies to the Cuban insurgents. The US Battleship Maine arrived in Havana Harbor in January 1898 with a dual mission to protect American interests and present the Spanish with a show of force. At 9:40 PM on the evening of February 15, an

The Spanish-American War was a war focused on control over Cuba. As previously stated, Spain touted a powerful navy, victory would cause the entire world to notice and give the United States a seat at the international table. Americans took notice of Spanish brutality to Cuban uprisings attempting to gain freedom and were sympathetic to the Cuban people. Fighting for our independence was fresh on the minds of Americans who began to support Cuban freedom from Spain. Dispatching the USS Maine off the coast of Cuba proved to be a fateful strategic move made by President McKinley because just days after on February 15th 1898 the ship was destroyed, killing over 250 sailors. Although believed to be an accident, yellow journalists ran with the story of war receiving overwhelming support from the public. War was declared in April of 1898 and just after

The subsequent bombing of the ship was blamed on the Spanish with virtually no evidence; however, yellow journalists Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst sensationalized Spanish “atrocities” in Cuba fanning the flames for war. McKinley sought support for a military campaign against the Spanish in Cuba on April 11, 1898 in his Message to Congress Requesing a Declaration of War. The address highlights four justifications for intervention in the region. McKinley’s third reason for intervention was “justified by the very serious injury to the commerce, trade, and business of our people” and fourth justification “…which is of the utmost importance. The present condition of affairs in Cuba is a constant menace to our peace and entails upon this Government an enormous expense” resonate with a sense of American imperialism. The primary concerns of the nation dealt with trade and business implications for American markets instead of the safety and security of the Cuban people. The Platform of the American Anti-Imperialist League supported the “immediate cessation of the war against liberty, begun by Spain.”

The battleship, USS Marine was stationed in Havana’s harbor to protect American interest in Cuba. An explosion destroyed the vessel on February 15, 1898. “A naval court of inquiry blamed the explosion on a mine, further inflaming public sentiment against Spain” (HIS104 U.S. History Since 1877 30-Jun-2008, OL20). Again, the press stirred up the public with stories and headlines of a Spanish conspiracy. American now demanded revenge for the deaths of 266 sailors (Faragher, J., 2008, Out of Many). President McKinley demanded that Spanish government end brutality of the Cuban people, engage in armistice, and promise the eventual independence of Cuba. Upon Spain’s refusal, McKinley asked for a declaration of war. (HIS104 U.S. History, Lecture, 30-Jun-2008, OL20). “In order to assure the world that it was fighting only for the good of Cuba and not for colonial gain, the US passed the Teller Amendment, which promised to make Cuba independent after the war was over” (SparkNotes: The Spanish American War, 1898-1901: Summary).

Around the late 1800s, Spain was having a hard time with preventing Cuban’s from fighting for their independence. The revolts led Spain to send over General Valeriano Weyler, to put a stop to the protests. Consequently, he had anyone suspected of supporting independence, removed from the general population, and sent to concentration camps. Newspaper publishers, William R. Hearst and Joseph Pulitzer, gave the word out to the American people, with the use of a little Yellow journalism--journalism based upon sensationalism and crude exaggeration, in an attempt to create disgust towards the Spanish government's actions. The American people, with their moral beliefs, and pride in their military might, decided to put into action the long-dormant