Yellow Journalism is a term used for the use of negligent and flamboyant newspaper reporting, without regard to facts. With yellow journalism the truth is usually misrepresented or concealed, more often than not, there may be no truth to the story at all. In its infancy, the term yellow journalism was used to describe the writing tactics used by William Hearst's New York Journal and Joseph Pulitzer's New York World. These men used yellow journalism to exaggerate and misguide the American public on happenings in Cuba; such reporting may have even sparked the Spanish-American war. Yellow journalism is by no means a memory in America's distant past; even the most conservative newspapers still practice it in a refined form today. Tabloids such as the Star and the Inquirer are notorious for sensationalizing and even falsifying headlines. Additionally, every once in a while straight edged newspapers papers such as the Wall Street Journal may get into the act as well. In 1996, ABC News was singled out for reporting that Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu had called then Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin a traitor, further investigation revealed that the accusation was false.
This paper will present a discussion on the past and present uses of yellow journalism and the impact that such reporting has had on history.
History of Yellow Journalism
Yellow journalism originated around 1896 when William Hearst's New York Journal and Joseph Pulitzer's New York World begin competing for readership. During these early times it was virtually impossible for individuals to fact check information for accuracy. The newspaper was the main source of information during these times, people trusted and believed what was reported. The reporting styles of these newspapers were filled with promotional stunts mainly focusing on attention grabbing headlines of sex crime and violence. These reports usually were extremely biased, inaccurate and exaggerated. Yellow journalism at that time did not promote journalistic...
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