“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free
exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
Our Founding Fathers embedded freedom of the press as a foundational American right. The language of the First Amendment could not be clearer. The only thing I would have considered adding if I had been a party to drafting the Bill of Rights would be to add a few words to enshrine the principle that the free press would also need to be a responsible press.
Freedom of the press in America actually pre-dated our Constitution. In 1733, a German printer and journalist named John Peter Zenger began printing a periodical called The New York Weekly Journal. Some of his work was critical of the colonial governor, a man named William Crosby. Crosby, apparently offended by Zenger’s words, had him arrested. When a grand jury refused to indict him, New York;s attorney general had him charged with libel. When all was said and done, Zenger was found not guilty of libel.
That verdict has shaped our national understanding of how a free press can operate in a free society. A free press has a great deal of latitude, with limitations. A free press can provoke and criticize, but it cannot use its considerable freedom and power to engage in libel or deceit The long and short of it is this – criticism is one thing; libel is stepping out of bounds, both legally and morally.
This philosophy worked quite well for many years, but there came a time when a journalistic bent for something different came on the scene. This approach was dubbed “yellow journalism.” In the 1880’s, Joseph Pulitzer, owner of the New York World, used his influence to fight against political corruption in New York City. His approach was unique, using banner headlines, sensationalized stories, and other techniques to inform the public about the skulduggery and political patronage that was taking place down at Tammany Hall.
Pulitzer’s approach was quite effective. The sensational reporting produced increases in circulation and profits. William Randolph Hearst, heir to the Hearst fortune, moved to New York, purchased a failing newspaper and set himself up as a direct competitor to Pulitzer. The rivalry produced some stunning results. Circulations skyrocketed. Hearst became a champion of the working class, using his publication to advocate for better working conditions for his working class subscribers.
As Hearst’s influence grew, he expanded his horizons. In the 1890’s, the United States was engaged in a geopolitical tug of war with Spain in Cuba. As the give and take got increasingly hostile, Hearst sent one of his reporters to Cuba to report on what was going on. The reporter went and cabled back to Hearst that there was no war. Hearst was said to have responded, “You furnish the pictures. I’ll furnish the war.” Then, in 1898, the U.S. battleship Maine exploded in Havana harbor, killing a large number of American sailors. Was the cause of the explosion accidental or had the Spanish been the dastardly culprits? It was at this point that yellow journalism took over. In the end, Hearst got the war he’d told his reporter he’d “furnish.”
The next phase of journalistic development came with a group of journalists who became known as the “muckrakers.” Writers like Lincoln Steffens, Ida Tarbell, and Upton Sinclair used their considerable skills to advocate for reform and change. They attacked corporations like Standard Oil and wrote at length about the awful working conditions America’s low wage laborers had to endure in factories in the Midwest or the deplorable working conditions in Chicago’s meat packing plants, as Sinclair Lewis did when his book “The Jungle” was published in 1906.
The muckrakers were very effective, so much so that in time a breed of journalists burst upon the scene. These days, we call them “investigative journalists.
While it’s difficult to pinpoint where this form of journalism was born, I believe it came upon the scene in the early 1930’s. The Soviet communists, once our allies in the struggle against Nazism, took over a large swath of Eastern Europe. While Stalin and his henchmen were proclaiming that they were creating an earthly utopia, the free world was suffering through what we now know as the “Great Depression.”
The obvious question arose. How could this be? Newspapers around the world sent journalists to Russia to see if this loudly proclaimed miracle was actually happening. One of the most prominent American journalists of the time, Walter Duranty, went to Moscow and began filing glowing reports back to the United States. Were Duranty’s reports true and, if they were, did that mean that Karl Marx was right when he said, “Let the ruling classes tremble at a Communist revolution. The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win.”
Very few questioned Duranty’s reports. After all, he was a highly respected journalist who wrote for the New York Times, America’s gold standard of journalism. But, a young Welsh journalist named Gareth Jones wanted to see the reported “miracle” for himself. So, he went to Moscow. He was introduced to Duranty, who took the Welshman “under his wing.” It didn’t take long for Jones to see what was actually going on. Duranty was investigating nothing. In truth, he wasn’t doing much other than posting stories that Stalin’s henchmen were providing for him.
It was at this point that Jones decided he needed to see what was actually going on. He somehow snuck away from Duranty and the Soviet officials and made his way to Ukraine, the Soviet breadbasket and home to multitudes of peasant farmers called “kulaks.” What he saw was as infuriating as it was tragic. Ukranians were starving by the millions in what is now known as the “Holodomor.” Stalin and the Soviet apparatus were systematically starving the Kulaks and selling the wheat they grew on world markets. The proceeds from these sales were then used to fund Stalin’s projects like the Moscow subway system and a group of enormous skyscrapers called “the “Seven Sisters.”
Jones managed to leave Russia and was determined to tell the world the whole story. Very few “reputable” newspapers would even give him the time of day. He was able to get William Randolph Hearst the reports he had filed, but it was to no avail. The “smart” people in America, given a choice between a highly respected journalist like Duranty, who wrote for the Grey Lady, and a Welsh upstart being supported by a “yellow journalist” like Hearst, chose Duranty.
The tragedy came full circle when Jones was murdered a few years after truthfully reporting on an act of genocide committed by one of the most evil men who has ever walked the face of the earth.
And Walter Duranty. Did he ever express remorse for the evil he was complicit in? No! In fact, he actually won the 1932 Pulitzer Prize for his work in Russia. Neither the Pulitzer Prize committee nor the New York Times have agreed to rescind the award. It still stands as a testament to the true nature of the members of the Pulitzer committee, the New York Times, and Walter Duranty. It makes my blood boil.
As I look at the Fourth Estate today I see the same levels of corruption that infected the thinking of Walter Duranty. You see it. I see it. We all see it! And, I believe the only thing that will turn things around for the craft we so zealously protect with our Constitution will be journalists who have the courage to expose the corruption. The prophet Elijah, challenged the corrupt practices of the powerful in his day (I Kings 18). He was given the mantle “troubler of Israel” for his effort. We need more journalists today who are willing to take on Elijah’s mantle in our day. And, when they do speak out we need to listen to them and support them.
There will be a follow up essay that focuses on the current scene in the world of mass media, journalism, and their respective relationships with the our government. It should be published sometime early next week.
As for the rest of this day, I’m going to get together with my Christian brothers and sisters at Kings Family Church in Kansas City. As we all do, I need day of worship, fellowship, and reflection before a new week in this mad, mad world dawns.