The Scopes Trial was one of the most controversial, widely reported, and well-researched court cases of the twentieth century. However, historians and other researchers have largely ignored the African American community's reaction and response to the trial, leaving out valuable perspectives on this historic event. In this article, the author…

This is an introduction to American newspapers. It starts with a history of newspapers and the tradition of American journalism that challenges authority. The article offers a description and discussion of major American newspapers and the different sections of a typical newspaper. There is also a section introducing some famous American…

The 1830s marked a lush first flowering of democratic journalism in America--participatory journalism of the sort that Alexis de Tocqueville heralded. But contrary to standard journalism history, this democratic press had nothing to do with the rise of the penny press; in fact, William Lloyd Garrison's abolitionist paper, "The…

While the typical pantheon of journalism history heroes is made up almost entirely of individuals who campaigned for more governmental regulation and increased social liberalism, there is also an opposing tradition in American journalism, one based on the premise that governmental cures are in most cases worse than the diseases they are designed…

Holding enormous if controversial power as Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), J. Edgar Hoover was sometimes controlled unexpectedly at the highest reaches of government, as illustrated by his failed attempt to obtain an Espionage Act indictment against the black press during World War II. Following anarchist bombings in 1919,…

Documents about the conditions and problems faced by the reporters of the Spanish-American War show that this war was particularly difficult to report, and that a historical misconception exists about journalism of the 1890s. Efforts to understand the reportage of the late nineteenth century in the United States are complicated by what has been…

While the founders of the penny press did not set out to establish a truer form of journalism, they did popularize both low prices for newspapers and newspaper economics based on sales instead of political party backing. The history of "The Sun,""The Herald," and "The Tribune" disprove the idea (advanced by journalism…

Analysis of the New York "Times's" financial column for the period October 13 to November 13, 1929, reveals that the column did not predict the stock market crash, that it was usually neutral in its financial analyses, and that it was more often optimistic than pessimistic in outlook. (FL)

The career of James Franklin, Benjamin Franklin's older brother, provides a case study in the use of polemics for a free press. A printer who actively courted controversy, Franklin found it necessary to use an unusual variety of strategies and justifications to evade or overcome potential legal, religious, and economic restraints. He demonstrated…

Examines the events surrounding the Bay of Pigs coverage in the "Times" and concludes that the editors did not hold back the story. (FL)

A content analysis of four Washington state newspapers published in 1948 reveals that they did not provide fair coverage of the House UnAmerican Activities Committee's investigation of communist infiltration at the University of Washington. (FL)

This study examines "The Times" newspaper of 19th century London to try to determine the mental image of America held by 2,500,000 Englishmen had which caused them to immigrate to the United States; and the mental image of America held by the vast majority of Englishmen who remained at home. (Author/RM)

The "Seattle Daily Times" and the "Seattle Post-Intelligencer" from February through September 1897 were reviewed to determine their reaction to President Grover Cleveland's executive order that abruptly withdrew from further private claims huge stretches of land remaining in the public domain. Specifically, the study sought to…

A study examined the conserving tendencies of the established political party press during the early stages of the antislavery movement. Eighteen partisan newspapers--from both northern and southern states--were examined for their coverage of the July 30, 1836, mob violence against James G. Birney and his Cincinnati "Philanthropist," and…

An examination of book reviews of Frederic Hudson's "Journalism History in the United States from 1690 to 1872" that appeared following the book's publication in 1873 reveal sharp negative criticisms of the book that raise questions about Hudson's accuracy. (GT)