The Time Capsule: Hearst: Yellow journalism in action
William Randolph Hearst did not, as far as I know, spend any time in Montgomery County. He had an impact, though, forming public opinion in this area and inadvertently helping to create a local war hero.
Hearst (1863-1951) owned nearly 30 major newspapers, then the largest chain in the country, and later expanded into magazines. He was often quoted, saying things such as: “News is something someone doesn’t want published; everything else is advertising.” Another, and probably better known quote, was: “You furnish the pictures, I’ll furnish the war.”
He bent news and turned it into advertising to reflect his opinion and advance political objectives, selecting which stories to print and which to ignore, sensationalizing and exaggerating to the extreme.
During the late 1890s a revolution of sorts was going on in Cuba. This was nothing new; Spanish rule had been challenged by militants for decades.
Hearst was in a circulation war with a competitor, Joseph Pulitzer, owner of the New York World. (Pulitzer was a quotable fellow himself. He routinely encouraged reporters and bashed his editors. This he explained by saying that “every reporter is a hope, and every editor is a disappointment.”)
Both Hearst and Pulitzer saw an opportunity to sell newspapers and also further a cause. They took an anti-Spain position, comparing Cuban rebels to this nation’s founding fathers.
Their articles, some of them outright fabrications, emphasized sympathy for the rebels and claimed barbaric acts by the Spanish government. Suppression by Spain was front page material; atrocities by insurgents ignored. These stories were picked up by other newspapers, including ours.
Hearst sent the noted artist, Fredrick Remington, to Cuba to provide action pictures of brave and dedicated rebels in combat. After a few weeks of visiting peaceful villages Remington wired Hearst that he was returning, there was no war. Hearst cabled a reply, saying he should stay and “you furnish the pictures, I’ll furnish the war.” (Some historians now doubt the wire was actually sent, but Hearst’s sentiment was clear.)
Heightened by often false and biased news reports, tensions between the U.S. and Spain increased. The battleship “USS Maine” was sent to Havana on the pretense of protecting American interests. In February 1898 the ship exploded, killing 252 American seamen, including Ensign Darwin Merritt of Red Oak.
The cause of the blast could not be positively established. Some experts believe It was an accident; that spontaneous ignition of coal detonated hundreds of pounds of gunpowder. Others felt the disaster was the result of a mine or bomb. If the latter was the case, either Cuban insurgents or the Spanish military could have been responsible.
Newspapers, led by Hearst and Pulitzer, did not need evidence. They placed the blame on Spain. “Remember the Maine” became a call to battle, and at no place was the “Maine” more revered than here.
War soon followed and we threw Spain out of Cuba. A series of corrupt dictators ruled before being displaced by Fidel Castro and his Communist/Socialist regime.
Hearst and Pulitzer were both ardent Democrats. Hearst was elected twice to the U.S. House of Representatives. While Pulitzer also served in Congress, he primarily used his influential newspaper to advance party causes. The two men had a lasting impact on the politics of news.
And now another Democrat is taking steps to make this nation’s relationship with the Cuban regime more compatible. I hope this works out.
Roy Marshall is a local historian and columnist for the Red Oak Express. He can be contacted at news@redoakexpress.com.