Politics

Joseph Pulitzer and the New York World

Addressing the class structure in America wherein immigrants failed to acquire sophistication and polish, Pulitzer’s editors were told to concentrate on stories about sex, violence, crime, tragedy, and farce.

Published

2 years ago

August 14, 2021

Jeff Davidson

Joseph Pulitzer was a sensationalist who helped perfect the screaming headline, tabloid mentality that exists to this day. Joseph Pulitzer and the New York World, by George Juergens was published by the Princeton University Press, in 1966. Here are vital notes and excerpts from the book:

“The goal of sensational journalism is to catch the interest, even to titillate, the vast body of men and women who for one reason or another are unconcerned with the happenings in government, business, or the arts.”

Sensationalism isn’t Pretty

Sensational newspapers expanded the meaning of the human interest story to report what had previously been regarded as private — the gossip and scandal about individuals — and discovered a rich source of news in crime and everyday tragedy. They began to pay as much attention to personalities as to local or national events.

While Joseph Pulitzer did not originate sensationalism, he played a crucial role in the history of American journalism simply by living at a time when social and economic changes enabled sensationalism to flourish.

Pulitzer used frivolous pictures, poetry, short stories, and the like, to make the newspaper a medium to entertain as well as inform. Pulitzer borrowed ideas of sensationalism that were not his own and brought them up to date to fit a modern America of cities and factories.

Circulation is King

When Pulitzer set up shop in New York, he wanted to achieve the greatest circulation in America’s history. He needed a large circulation in order to have a podium from which his liberal principles could be heard. To obtain it, he had to win the confidence, as well as excite the interest, of the masses of people.

Pulitzer took delight in alliteration. “Fact, Fuss, Fun and Philosophy for the Fair Sex”; “Mangled by Mongrels”; and “Terrible Time in Troy”; were typical of blazing headlines that crossed the front of his papers.

To attract more attention and strike the reader’s eye, Pulitzer sometimes resorted to the dubious practice of pumping minor items out of proportion. A typical technique was to ask a question in the headline, usually one the paper could not answer.

In one instance, two brothers argued in a boarding house, and one shot the other while the grief-stricken mother clasped the dead son’s body to her breast. Rather than use such obvious headlines as “Youth Kills Brother” or “A Tale of Cain and Abel,” Pulitzer seized the reader’s attention with “Blood on Mother’s Lips.”

While patricians might decry such journalism as tasteless, Pulitzer pointed to a steadily rising circulation to prove its effectiveness.

Creating the News

Pulitzer reputedly had a “nose for news,” recognizing the appropriate stories when they appeared, and, when they did not appear, creating them. Such a knack meant making fine judgments about stories that had no place in a mass circulation journal, and not least important, knowing how to present and embellish the right stories so that their potential was not lost on the reader.

The large number of immigrants in New York who had trouble reading English came to rely on Hearst’s paper, The World, for headlines. Accommodating the uncertain literacy of it’s readers, the paper had abundant pictures and bold headlines splashed across each page. Reporters were urged to use simple language and uncomplicated sentence structure.

Addressing the class structure in America wherein immigrants failed to acquire sophistication and polish, the editors concentrated on stories about sex, violence, crime, tragedy, and farce.

The World also resurrected buried items, venturing far from New York City to find desired material. Pulitzer often played up material ignored by other papers to make his front page startling and eye-catching. Pulitzer played up one incident, a squabble between two cab drivers, for three days running, with headlines such as “Will There be a Duel?” The argument long over, the public was kept on the hook, ostensibly so that Pulitzer could sell newspapers.

Constant Conjuring

When the newspaper ran short of news items for sensational treatment, it filled the void by conjuring up equivalent feature material, usually for the Sunday editions. A sampling of features included:

* Recent examples of human sacrifice among fanatical religious sects in the U.S.

* A long report on weapons used to commit murder, including a nail, a coffin lid, a red-hot horseshoe, an umbrella, a match box, a window brush, and a tea kettle.

* A description of two cutthroats from Vienna, Austria, who specialized in courting lonely women and then murdering them.

* A thrilling narrative of cannibalism at sea, in which shipwrecked soldiers cut the jugular vein of the weakest member, their cabin boy, and lived off his flesh.

Publicizing Gore

The ability to discover offbeat ways of publicizing gore was particularly important during the 1880s, when Pulitzer’s paper grew in size. After deciding what stories should go into the paper, the challenge became presenting them in an effective way. The top-flight journalist who had lost his capacity for shock needed to be wary.

“Pulitzer discovered that when the public became interested in a murder, its curiosity and appetite for detail were almost insatiable. Hence, provocative, gruesome, coy, but never dull, headlines embellished paper after paper.”

Personally, I find it remarkable and horrific that the Pulitzer Prize, an award representing the highest aspirations and achievements in journalism, is named for Mr. Joseph Pulitzer. What a world.

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Jeff Davidson

Jeff Davidson is the world's only holder of the title "The Work-Life Balance Expert®" as awarded by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. He is the premier thought leader on work-life balance, integration, and harmony. Jeff speaks to organizations that seek to enhance their overall productivity by improving the effectiveness of their people. He is the author of Breathing Space, Simpler Living, Dial it Down, and Everyday Project Management. Visit www.BreathingSpace.com for more information on Jeff's keynote speeches and seminars, including: Managing the Pace with Grace® * Achieving Work-Life Balance™ * Managing Information and Communication Overload®

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Life

Give Thanks and Carry On

Have a Happy Thanksgiving, if you can

Published

1 week ago

November 22, 2023

Jeff Davidson

Thanksgiving: that joyous time of the year when families get together, have a wonderful dinner, catch up on what everyone other is doing, give thanks for all that they have, and perhaps watch some football.

Up for the Challenge?

This Thanksgiving might prove to be a challenge for many people. For one, the cost of the turkey, the bird traditionally served, in some locals cost between 50% to 80% more than last year, and turkey was already expensive.

Among your relatives a few might be vegans or vegetarians. If you have a vegan enforcer in the family, this person will rail on and on against eating meat, and about how turkeys have lives just like we do.

One of your vegan or vegetarian relatives might offer a discourse on how cranberries should be harvested a different way, the dangers of turkey stuffing, and the problem with vegetables that you might be serving, the risk of having too many starches – potatoes or rice – and the evils of wine, beer, and other alcoholic drinks.

Topics Worth Avoiding

The politics to consider abound. Since roughly half of the country votes Democrat and half votes Republican, the odds are overwhelming that you’re going to have somebody with opposing politics at the table. During Trump’s years as president, many families had to navigate around the topic of the presidency, prevailing policies. and so on.

Today, while there’s no question that Joe Biden is completely inane as leader, the same delicate navigation needs to occur. As miraculous as this might seem, some on the left actually approve of what Biden has been doing. Note: don’t be concerned about the Bidens going hungry. With all those under-the-table payment from Ukraine and China, they can EASILY afford a huge, expensive turkey with all of the trimmings.

If you can avoid discussing the eight million invaders illegally crossing our borders, rampant inflation, the U.S. Afghanistan withdrawal, the crisis in Israel and potential for World War III, drag time story hour for children, transgenderism, the bogus lawsuits against Donald Trump, the unending crimes of Hunter Biden, the payola to Joe Biden, FBI corruption, the historic unpopularity and ineptness of Kamala Harris, and about 30 or so other topics, your dinner should go smoothly. Enjoy!

A huge current wrinkle on the political scene is that recent surveys reveal at least one-quarter of Democrats actually approve of Hamas, atrocities and all, and side with Palestine on all issues large and small. They believe that Israel is an apartheid state and that Jews are today’s Nazis. Apparently they’ve never visited Israel and have no Jewish friends.

Depending on how many Democrats attend your Thanksgiving gathering, if it’s four or more, mathematically speaking you have a decent chance that one is a pro-Hamas Democrat. Wooo… Now, you really have to stay clear of current issues or your dinner table might be as inflamed verbally as the Middle East is with armaments.

Insufferable Stuffing

After everyone is stuffed with turkey, vegeburgers, or whatever the people who like rabbit food eat, you might sit in the den and turn on a football game. Quickly, you’ll have a stark reminder of how far political correctness has infected society.

If the Washington Commanders are playing, it’s hard to forget that they used to be called the Washington Redskins until the wokesters among us demanded that the name must be changed. Not so ironically, 90% of native Americans actually want the name Washington Redskins reinstalled, and currently are petitioning for it.

In baseball, the Cleveland Indians “had” to be renamed to the Cleveland Guardians. Potentially, there’s no end of this malarkey. Should the Minnesota Vikings change their name? After all, people from Scandinavia might object to the term “Vikings.” While we’re at it, consider college basketball. The Wake Forest University Demon Deacons are due for a name change, if you’re on the Left. So, too, the Duke University Blue Devils, the Arizona University Aztecs, and on and on.

Landmines to Side Step

With all these potential land mines to side step, and all the ways that otherwise pleasant conversations on a pleasant day could occur, you have to be on guard.

Nevertheless, I wish you and yours a happy Thanksgiving. May you survive the day, fully intact, and ready to have a decent Black Friday.

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Politics

Guinness World Record for U.S. Presidential Lies

Lies are sometimes necessary, but some are gross manipulations of reality

Published

1 week ago

November 20, 2023

Jeff Davidson

Are you a conservative business person? Then check out the Red Referral Network and partner with Dinesh D’Souza by clicking the banner below:

In its non-stop attempt to portray Donald Trump as the most despicable person ever, the Left slanders him daily in ways unprecedented in American history. If Trump makes an exaggeration, which he is prone to do, he’s called a liar. In office, when Trump achieved anything of note, the Left cherry-picked minor aspects that could be criticized and elevated beyond their stature.

Those on the Right recognize the deeper, universal truths that Trump espouses. Hence, they attend his rallies by the tens of thousands. Hardly anyone is eager to attend a Joe Biden rally. Why?

All Built on Lies

Joe Biden, beyond his word salad bumbling, is an incredible liar, covering for Barack Obama, his master. Virtually everything that Biden and his press secretary say is a lie. Unsurprisingly, public confidence in the presidency and today’s sycophant journalism is at an all-time low.

His agency heads consistently lie: Merrick Garland, Alejandro Mayorkas, Christopher Wray, Pete Buttigieg, and Antony Blinken, among many others. Take your pick.

The precedent for the Biden Administration’s lies is the administration of Barack Obama, for whom Biden served as vice president. Obama taught Biden the best of lying techniques.

To Lie and To Swerve

Lies are sometimes necessary, but some are gross manipulations of reality. A brief look at presidential lies since 1968 puts Obama’s lies in context.

LBJ said that none of our boys would die in foreign soil, and 54,000 Americans died in Vietnam. Nixon made many statements, most memorably, “I’m not a crook,” yet he sought to steal the private records of enemies and was exposed by the Watergate scandal.

George Bush senior said, “Read my lips, no new taxes.” Then in office, he raised taxes which, rolling over in his grave, he likely regrets. Bill Clinton told so many lies, you’d need a book to catalog them all. Among his most famous is “I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky.”

George W. Bush, faultily advised, made concerning statements about Iraq. Barack Obama, Joe Biden’s handler, said he’d have the most transparent administration in history. Alas, his was the most secretive: spying on enemies, journalists, political opponents, and everyday American citizens.

The Grand Wizard of Big Lies

Obama touted that he’d restore trust in government. Instead, he opened the doors to the opposite. Obama said the stimulus will fund shovel-ready jobs. It did not. He said, “I am focused like a laser on creating jobs.” The jobs he created were low-wage and low-level. Obama told hardworking entrepreneurs, “You didn’t build that,” which offended business owners everywhere.

Obama weaponized federal agencies to persecute and prosecute Conservatives, so it was hardly a transparent administration. He insisted the IRS was not targeting anyone, but under his henchwoman, Lois Learner, the IRS targeted the Tea Party and Conservatives in general. Lerner’s department harassed, intimidated, and fined them, and diminished their impact on voters in the 2012 election.

Obama proclaimed that a spontaneous riot based on a movie sparked the attack on the Benghazi consulate, which he knew was completely untrue. The attack was well coordinated and planned in advance.

No Stopping Him

Obama announced that the public will have five days to review every bill which lands on his desk. Then, he hustled through some of the most expensive boondoggles in U.S. history. With the introduction of Obamacare, Obama said that you can keep your family doctor and that premiums will be lowered by $2,500. This was utterly false.

Obama stated that whistleblowers would be protected in his administration. Then, he offered no protection. Obama said we’ll get back every dime we use to rescue the banks and auto companies, with interest. This did not happen.

He emphasized that, if elected, he would end the war in Iraq and Afghanistan within nine months. He did not. He claimed he would close Guantanamo within six months. It did not happen. He claimed ignorance about the “fast and furious” gun-running scheme to arm Mexican drug cartels. He knew. Obama proclaimed that he would bridge the gap between black and white Americans. Actually, he increased it in ways that set racial relations back 50 years.

The Biggest Lie of All

The biggest lie that Obama ever uttered occurred on January 20th, 2009, when he said, “I, Barack Hussein Obama, pledge to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States of America.” Twelve years later, Biden did the same.

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