Millie Kim (9)

Period A3
9/3/13
Introduction to Publications
William Randolph Hearst
William Randolph Hearst, the American newspaper publisher who built the nations largest
newspaper chain and profoundly influenced the American paper, was also the one who aroused the
start of yellow journalism. William Randolph Hearst was born into a wealthy family as the son of
George and Phoebe Hearst, on April 29th, 1863 in San Francisco, California. According to the
textbook, High School Journalism written by Homer L. Hall and Logan H. Aimone, George
Hearst was the owner of the San Francisco Evening Examiner, and an owner of a goldmine.
Naturally, William Hearst grew up to follow his fathers footsteps into becoming a journalist.
As indicated in Wikipedia, Hearsts early life was mostly influenced by his schools and
family. He attended a private boarding school, St. Pauls School, in Concord, and graduated from
Harvard, class of 1885. Being born as the son of a journalist, Hearst grew up to have interest in
journalism. Searching for an occupation, Hearst started out by working for his fathers paper, the
Examiner, and afterwards set out for his own newspaper company. In 1887, he started to incorporate
sensationalism in the paper, similar to how Joseph Pulitzer did for the New York World. He soon
purchased the New York Morning Journal and became rivals with Pulitzer. With this rising rivalry,
the two used methods like yellow journalism to surpass their opponent.
In 1897, when Hearst was gaining popularity, he bought Vamoose, a yacht, and sent Richard
Davis and Frederic Remington to Cuba. He sent the two to report on the Cuban insurrection that
started in 1895, and to gain information on Cubas actions. Although Davis and Remington reported
that there was no possible threat of war, Hearst published articles that indicated an imminent threat
of war with Cuba. It was the start of appealing to the publics interest by fabricating information.
The High School Journalism textbook shows that other journalists adapted to using fake
information by following Hearsts lead. A reporter from the New Republic, Stephen Glass, was fired
from his job after he confessed about fabricating in several articles. Afterwards, Jason Blair, a
reporter for the New York Times, admitted he had plagiarized from various stories. The disclosures
by journalists allowed the public to be able to draw a line between lies and facts, and it all started
from William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pulitzers little rivalry.
In 1923, to put the problems to an end, the American Society of Newspaper Editors adopted
rules to be followed by journalists. In 1947, Hearst left to obtain medical care, and died in Beverly
Hills on August 14, 1951, at the age of 88. Although, he has stirred up the issue of yellow
journalism, he contributed to journalism greatly. Through his publishing, he exercised great political
influence, and sometimes was able to change public opinion.
Citations
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Randolph_Hearst
High School Journalism Textbook