Mass Media and Communication, Part 3

Question 1: Provide examples of how Joseph Pulitzer changed the direction of daily newspapers (both positively and negatively) in the late 19th century.

Answer 1: As publisher of the New York World, Joseph Pulitzer introduced two seemingly conflicting styles: new journalism and yellow journalism.Pulitzer used the World as a vehicle to attack big business and corruption; however, he also introduced yellow journalism, a style of writing that exaggerated and fabricated stories to increase circulation. In terms of readership, the World was an unqualified success. Circulation increased from 15,000 to 600,000 during Pulitzer’s time as publisher. The World was one of the first newspapers to depend upon advertising for revenue. Pulitzer’s vision of a publication that appealed to the common person ushered in the era of mass-circulation journalism.

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Question 2: Describe how Edward R. Murrow helped establish standards for journalism in television news.

Answer 2: Edward R. Murrow (1908-1965) was one of the first journalists to move successfully from radio to television. Already well known for his reports from Europe during World War II, Murrow began his transition to television in late 1951, when his Hear It Now radio show moved to CBS Television and was renamed See It Now.The pinnacle of Murrow’s television career was a 1954 See It Now episode entitled “A Report on Senator Joseph McCarthy.” McCarthy, a Wisconsin senator, was a fervent anti-Communist. Using his post as chairperson of the House Committee on Un-American Activities, McCarthy ruthlessly accused thousands of U.S. citizens of subversion and disloyalty.The effect of “McCarthyism” was so profound that CBS did not pay for any advance advertising of the See It Now report. When Murrow dug into his own pocket to pay for the ads, CBS did not allow him to use the company’s logo. Despite the network’s misgivings, Murrow’s exposé of McCarthy’s tactics turned public opinion against the senator. The program demonstrated the impact that investigative journalism could have in the relatively new medium of television.

Question 3: Provide examples of how Katharine Graham’s role as publisher of The Washington Post changed American journalism in the 1970s.

Answer 3: Katharine Graham (1917-2001) assumed control of The Washington Post in 1963 after her husband, Philip, committed suicide. At that time, no other woman held the top position at a major American newspaper. Graham and her editor, Benjamin Bradlee, played a major role in uncovering the Watergate scandal, the major political story of the 1970s. Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, then lower-level reporters at the Post, began uncovering evidence of illegal tactics employed by members of President Richard Nixon’s re-election campaign. At several critical points, Graham and Bradlee published Woodward and Bernstein’s stories despite angry denials and not-so-subtle threats from the Nixon administration. Other newspapers, notably the New York Times, noticed the Post’s Watergate coverage and uncovered significant evidence over the next two years. The steady stream of investigative reporting led to Nixon resignation from the presidency in August 1974.

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