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Top:Jewish Leaders Folder: Joseph Pulitzer:
 

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CAUTION: As copyright holder,John Therkelsen requests that you only read this article fromhis own website. This archived copy is only here as an emergency.The link to John Therkelsen's site which has a far, far betterlayout is at http://www.onlineconcepts.com/pulitzer/and you should link there NOW. Onlyif the link is dead, should you use this copy.

Introduction

The award endowed by Joseph Pulitzer in 1911 has come to representthe ultimate recognition in American journalism. Today, the Prizeensures that quality newspapers of all sizes and circulationswill receive praise from circles within, as well as outside, thewriting profession. Pulitzer's legacy has even saved entire newspapersfrom going under by simply citing them for an award.

Ironically, many historians today consider the man who endowedthe most prestigious honor in the journalism profession a sensationalist and opportunist. Pulitzer himselfclaimed to have the highest standard of ethics for his newspapers:"When you go to New York, ask any of the [reporters] . .. and you will see that accuracy, accuracy, accuracy, is the first,the most constant demand I have made on them." 1

Somewhere between these two views lies the truth about Pulitzer.This paper will seek to interpret his life and writings to definehis values in their context.

Background

Pulitzer was born to a wealthy family in Hungary on April 10,1847. 2 He received a quality education and sought adventure inthe army as a teenager. The Hungarian army rejected him becauseof his poor eyesight and frail body. After two other Europeanarmies declined to admit him, Pulitzer resolved to join the AmericanUnion army, which was soliciting in Hungary at the time. He emigratedto the United States in 1864 and fought without distinction untilthe end of the war. 3

After the war, Pulitzer travelled to St. Louis, which had alarge German-speaking population. There he worked odd jobs, includinga lucrative position burying the dead during a cholera outbreakin 1866. He caught the attention of a local German-language newspapereditor in the chess room of the Mercantile Library. Pulitzer'squick mind and perseverance prompted Carl Schurz of the WestlichePost to hire him as a reporter. While working on the paper, Pulitzergot his first taste of politics, which would obsess him the restof his life. He competed in a special election in 1869 to filla seat in the lower house of the state legislature and won asa Republican.

As a legislator, he fought corruption within the city government.One day, Captain Edward Augustine, a lobbyist who disagreed withPulitzer, publicly called him a "damned liar." Pulitzeradjourned to his room a short distance away and returned in tenminutes brandishing a pistol. In the melée that ensued,Pulitzer fired two shots as Augustine charged him. One of thebullets went stray, and one lodged itself in the lobbyist's leg.Accounts differ as to whether Augustine had a pistol himself,although Pulitzer claimed he had received a large gash on hishead from being clubbed with a gun.

Pulitzer lost much credibility in the legislature even thoughguns were common accessories at the time. However, he was notheavily sanctioned by the courts. He paid a $100 fine for hismisconduct and had to compensate the court $300. He borrowed themoney from friends. An unsigned account of Pulitzer's life whichdeclared it was "AN INTIMATE NARRATIVE" analyzed theimplications of the affair. "If Mr. Pulitzer ever afterwardformed any murderous purposes he failed to develop the courageof his convictions. He henceforward attacked character and reputationonly." 4

After earning money at minor political appointments and inlaw, Pulitzer continued to work on the Westliche Post and acquireda controlling interest from Schurz in 1872. He would later sellthe paper back to its original proprietor for a $30,000 profit.Pulitzer continued to quietly invest in lagging newspapers andmake money. By age 31, he had acquired a small nest egg and marriedKate Davis, an intelligent, compassionate woman of high socialstanding.

After returning from the honeymoon in Europe, he purchasedthe St. Louis Dispatch in a manner similar to the other newspaperdeals. He paid about $3,000 for the lagging daily through a secretbidder at an auction. After merging with the Post, he laid thefoundation for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, which would prosperunder his leadership and make him an early fortune.

In 1883, he yearned for a larger audience and bought the NewYork World from financier Jay Gould for $346,000. He moved withhis family to New York, retaining ownership of and control overthe Post-Dispatch. Pulitzer would continue to correspond dailywith the St. Louis office until his death, but he devoted mostof his energy to the World, which would become larger and moreinfluential with time. In 1883, however, the World was a smallfish in a sea of New York journals. Pulitzer turned the mediocredaily into one of the premier papers in the city, and the world.His changes in style and content increased the World's circulationten times in five years, from 15,000 to 150,000. 5

Changing the Look of the Front Page

Pulitzer's keen instincts told him that newspapers did notsell solely because of their reputations, their political affiliationsor their actual content. He understood one of the key tenets ofmodern salesmanship: presentation is everything. He had the expertiseand confidence to apply this to his newly-acquired paper, andthe front pages of newspapers everywhere never looked the sameagain.

One simple but effective change instituted by Pulitzer wasthe use of graphic element to attract attention from potentialreaders. Within two weeks of acquiring the World, Pulitzer placedan illustration of the newly-constructed Brooklyn Bridge on thefront page. 6 (See appendix for comparison of new and old Worlds.)Illustrations had been used in newspapers before, but new technologymade the process more simple and cost effective.

Before the advent of the stereotype rotary press, printingmachines would press a blank page against a flat bed of type toget a printed page. Placing a rule between every column boundthe type together when the press was running. Large graphic elements,such as woodcuts and multi-column headlines, did not bind thetype as well and often required some adjustment during a pressrun. The stereotype rotary press used the bed of type to createa mold. Molten metal was poured over the mold, and the resultingmetal plate was bent into a cylinder. The sturdy cylinder wasable to withstand the stresses associated with the printing processwithout falling apart. 7

Graphic elements allowed Pulitzer to denote importance to certainstories with a large picture or headline, creating a hierarchyon the page. He had the foresight to know that readers respondedto "eye candy." He revealed his true motives for usingpictures to a group of visiting reporters:

I had a small paper which had been dead for years, and I wastrying in every way I could think of to build up its circulation.. . . What could I use for bait? A picture, of course. . . . Onpage one, in a position that would make the World stand out asthe paper lay folded on the newsstand. . . ." 8

Long before marketing executives at USA Today discovered themulti-color pie chart, Pulitzer understood the value of packagingin selling a product.

Using illustrations was not the only innovation the newsmanmade. As soon as he took over the editorship of the World, hechanged the boring masthead to an interesting Oxford-style typeset.He removed the words "New York"from the masthead and replaced them with a line drawing of a worldmap centered on a printing press which emanated rays of light.

Over a period of time, Pulitzer transferred the lead storyfrom its traditional place at the top left side of the front pageto the top right. The crafty editor experimented and came to theconclusion that people do not read newspapers and books in thesame manner. Without the use of focus groups or market analysts,he instituted a policy which soon became standard good practice.

Multi-column headlines were another Pulitzer innovation. Previouslyin the 19th century, editors denoted important stories by stackingnumerous one-line headlines on top of the text. A particularlysignificant story would sometimes have headlines continuing downhalf of the first column. The following headlines described aCincinnati riot in an 1884 World Extra:

A NIGHT OF TERROR

CINCINNATI IN THE HANDS

OF A MOB.

THE BATTLE RENEWED.

ARMED WITH DYNAMITE THE MOB RETURNS

AND FIRES THE COURT HOUSE.

BERNER RE-ARRESTED.

THE MILITIA AGAIN FIRE ON THE

MADDENED RIOTERS.

BLOODY MIDNIGHT WORK.

ARMORY HALL ON FIRE - COL. HUNT'S HOTEL

THREATENED - A REGION OF TERROR. 9

Pulitzer, in his quest to make the World's front page as appealingas possible, abandoned confusing one-column headlines in favorof a single headline extending over more than one column. Thelarge, single headline was another graphic element, in additionto the illustration, which Pulitzer used to draw the reader'seye.

Eventually, he made use of the space on either side of themasthead by proclaiming the paper's virtues in small, square boxes.The test in these "ears" varied, but the following isa typical example: "READ THE SIXTH PAGE / CIRCULATION OVER/ 100,000 EVERY DAY / ADVERTISE YOUR WANTS. / CHEAPEST RATES INTHE CITY." 10 Today, newspapers commonly use this space forweather capsules or their mottoes, such as The New York Times'"All the News That's Fit to Print."

Pulitzer was never shy about publishing his circulation inorder to attract advertisers. During his tenure at the World,advertising would become a more important source of revenue fornewspapers. In 1880, big city journals received about sixty-fivepercent of their revenue from reader purchases, and thirty-fivepercent came from advertising. By 1900, the statistic had flip-flopped,with advertisers paying fifty-five percent of the cost of thenewspapers. This trend continued, and people who buy newspaperstoday pay only twenty percent of the true cost, while advertiserspick up the rest of the tab. 11

The advent of large department stores such as A.T. Stewart'sbegan this trend. These stores had large advertising budgets,but they had to attract many patrons to ensure the success oftheir capital-intensive ventures. To get the most value for theiradvertising dollar, department stores would only advertise innewspapers with the highest circulations. 12

Pulitzer understood the dynamic. He lowered the World's priceFebruary 10, 1896 to one cent to compete with Hearst's Journaland continued to innovate in ways that drew readers. Unfortunatelyfor other publishers, running a traditional newspaper and retaininga small group of loyal subscribers did not appeal to advertisers.This often sounded the death knell for papers which came in secondor third in the race for circulation. Today, the industry stillsuffers from its dependence on advertising, and some cities havelost all their journals but one.

Shortly before his death, Pulitzer defended his obsession withincreasing readership:

If a newspaper is to be of real service to the public, it musthave a big circulation . . . because circulation means advertising,and advertising means money, and money means independence. 13

Some critics charge that Pulitzer is partly responsible forperpetuating a system which benefitted newspapers with the highestcirculations. They say the lofty ideals purported in his PulitzerPrize simply disguised his true desire to create a memorial tohimself. "After all, if he felt the news media had becometoo commercial, he was in a perfect position to develop a strategyfor making them less so. . . . 14

A Paper for the People

Pulitzer's innovative use of graphic elements was one strategythat helped him garner more readers and advertising. However,he also drew people in by emphasizing coverage of new types ofstories. Some of the changes gave human interest stories, gossipand even scandal prominent coverage simply because they fascinatedreaders. Pulitzer always stated that a paper could entertain readersand draw them in through its front page. The fourth page, whichcontained editorials, would educate.

He sought to make his journal appeal to the lowest common denominator,readers who did not consider themselves upper class literati.Immigrants, workingmen, and women were among the groups that oftensuffered from little or no education at the time; these were thegroups Joseph Pulitzer sought out.

These groups flocked to the World because the paper took the"frivolous" interests of the masses seriously. Pulitzerurged his editors to locate articles of like interest on the samepage. During the 1890s, the World developed a page consistingexclusively of sports, and another of "women's news."The sports page recognized, for the first time, that readers hadan insatiable interest in the subject and demanded quality coverage.The World's women's page covered topics such as fashion, the feministmovement and morality (ostensibly only a women's issue at thetime). 15

The World did not strive for radicalism in its portrayal ofthe feminist movement. The paper publicized news about the movement,but declined to advocate specific goals like suffrage and equaleducation. By including short fiction in the Sunday edition, theWorld encouraged its women patrons to expand their reading. 16However, the advice columns seldom recommended that a woman completeher schooling and seek to enter the professions. Pulitzer knewthat his readers did not belong to the middle class, the chiefproponent of the women's movement at the time. Many of the World'swomen readers were immigrants who had to work to support the familybut had traditional ideas about their role in the home. His newspapermanaged to treat this sensitive issue with care.

Opinions and Hard News

Pulitzer used another strategy to attract readers in additionto introducing new sections that dealt with women and sports.He knew that no newspaper was worth its salt unless it got patronsto care about serious issues. After reading a lengthy World articledetailing fraud in the Equitable insurance company, Pulitzer advisedhead editor Don Seitz that the paper should be also fun to read:17

Following so long, and so very serious and article, comes immediatelya dissertation on the tariff. . . . After the Equitable articleshould have come something lighter in touch and topics. . . ."18

Pulitzer probably found the March 15, 1909 editorial page tohis liking. The lead editorial at the top left of the page didfocus on the tariff, but the article underneath carried a trivialpiece with the headline, "THE NORMAL WAIST." After announcingthat men did not have to worry about their belt line, but a woman'swaist offers "an intimate question in aesthetics," theWorld editors used fanciful phrases to ponder aloud when obesityis considered obscene.

After a rousing performance of verbal gymnastics, the editorsended the article with no real conclusion, saying: "Perhaps,after all, the normal waist is one concerning which Nature proposesand Fashion has no audacity to dispose." 19 The next articledescribed the murder in Italy of a New York detective who hadinvestigated the mob. By 1909, the editors of the World had masteredthe art of guiding the reader's eye through a page in order toeducate and entertain.

A Democratic Paper

On the opinions pages, Pulitzer concentrated on issues thatinterested the marginalized groups of immigrants, women and workingmen.Both of his newspapers, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the World,strongly supported the Democratic party. The editorial pages oftencarried censorious tales of graft and corruption committed byRepublican office holders. Pulitzer even turned the presidentialelection of 1884 on its ear by exploiting a mistake made by theRepublican candidate, James G. Blaine. Polls still favored theRepublican stalwart at the end of October.

Grover Cleveland, the Democratic candidate, was strugglingwith scandal surrounding his illegitimate child. Republican supporterspenned a popular refrain to describe their opponent: "Ma!Ma! Where's my pa? Gone to the White House, Ha! Ha! Ha!"20 Pulitzer accepted the fact that Cleveland had fathered a childout of wedlock before his marriage, but he considered Blaine'stransgressions a greater threat to the presidency.

As a congressman during the '70s, Blaine had received thousandsof dollars from a railroad company over which he had regulatorysupervision. By securing the incriminating documents from hissecretary and through some amount of luck, Blaine avoided beingprosecuted for his graft. However, during the 1884 election, thesecretary disclosed some letters which Blaine had neglected toobtain. One message with the words, "Burn this letter,"cemented in Democrats' minds the chant, "Blaine, Blaine,the liar from Maine." 21

This election turned into one of the most sensational in U.S.history, with voters undecided between two men with very obviousflaws. One could not brush the bribing hand of industry away fromhis pocket; the other could not keep his own hands under control.Pulitzer saw the issue as clear-cut. Cleveland had erred in privatelife, while Blaine had betrayed the public trust. However, noDemocratic paper was able to convince the public until Pulitzerpublished a front-page account of a little-noticed Republicanfundraiser in New York.

The event was not out of the ordinary for an election year.Blaine met with financiers including William H. Vanderbilt, JayGould and Andrew Carnegie at the upscale Delmonico's restaurantto secure their support. However, the World described the affairas "THE ROYAL FEAST OF BALSHAZZAR BLAINE AND THE MONEY KINGS"in a seven-column headline. 22 The coverage, as well as a half-pagecartoon depicting the candidate eating "lobby pudding"and "monopoly soup," focused the public on Blaine'sshady financial deals. No other newspaper, whether Democraticor Republican, had published a detailed account of the fundraiserthe day after it happened. But they all covered the event afterthe World's story made its splash. (See appendix for October 30front page.)

Defining "Yellow Journalism":

Competition with Hearst

The Pulitzer name remains popular today because it is associatedwith the most prestigious award in American journalism. Yet manyhistorians revile the award's benefactor with charges of irresponsiblereporting and sensationalism. The Pulitzer name is most oftenlinked in textbooks with that of William Randolph Hearst, a Californianwho assumed control of the Journal in 1895.

Hearst burst onto Park Row, the New York street lined withnewspaper buildings, and immediately began to shake things up.The ironic and tragic elements of the story cannot be ignored.The Journal was founded in 1882 by Albert Pulitzer, Joseph's brother.Albert sold the paper at a profit, and it continued with a modestcirculation until Hearst moved to New York and purchased it. Surely,Hearst would have bought another paper had the Journal not beenfor sale, but Joseph had to live with the fact that the newspaperwhich became his chief competitor had originated within his ownfamily. The two brothers became estranged over time, as Josephconsidered his sibling rash and frivolous.

The irony does not end there; both Joseph Pulitzer and Hearstwere outsiders when they came to New York. Their papers appealedto the same elements of the city that had previously been ignoredby the press. Women, labor leaders, Democrats, immigrants andthe poor found articles that held their interest and representedtheir political views.

Hearst's purchase of the Journal began one of the most dramaticperiods of competition in journalistic history. He did not spareany expense in reaching his goal of increased circulation. Helowered the Journal's price to one cent, expanded the number ofpages, and then dipped into his family's finances to support hisbold moves. Much of his success came by imitation of Pulitzer.Hearst took the striking headlines of the World and made themlarger and bolder. Trivial stories which compelled suspense andinterest not only appeared on the front page of the Journal, theydominated it.

Early in 1896, Pulitzer began to pay serious attention to thenewcomer. In January, Hearst enticed Richard Felton Outcault,the artist who drew the popular comic strip, "The YellowKid," to move to the Journal. The strip was named for themain character's colorful robes. Pulitzer's use of a color comicstrip in the Sunday World was an innovation at the time. In additionto stealing Felton, Hearst managed in the same month to convincePulitzer's entire Sunday staff to work for the Journal.

This constituted a coup on Park Row, and a dash of poetic justice.Pulitzer, although he was an established veteran in 1886, hadoriginally stolen many of his staff members from other paperswhen he came to New York. His code name for the audacious publisher,"Gush," only begins to describe the animosity he felttoward the upstart. Hearst, at thirty-three, almost seemed a youngerversion of the forty-eight year-old Pulitzer. However, Pulitzerwas never a man to resign in defeat. He hired George B. Luks tocontinue producing "The Yellow Kid" at the World eventhough its creator had left. The competition between Pulitzerand Hearst, each with his own brightly-colored comic strip, sealedtheir fates together and provided future historians with the convenienttitle of "yellow journalism."

Rivalry in the newspaper business generally results in a moreinformed public. Editors are compelled to become more innovative,and reporters must perform more research to scoop their competitors.Unfortunately, the financial and emotional stakes were too highin 1896 for Pulitzer or Hearst to consider losing. Both men hadto contend with their tremendous egos and a public whose appetitehad been whetted for sensation. Newspaper readers were beggingfor a scandal, regardless of the consequences, and that is whatthe World and the Journal delivered.

The Cuban insurrection would become the event that loweredthe World's reputation forever as it sunk to compete with Hearst'sJournal. The Journal fervently declared its support for the localrevolutionaries against the tyranny of their Spanish rulers. Hearsteven refused to carry news from Spanish sources, declaring onlyrebel informants could be trusted. Such a basic breach of journalisticobjectivity offended the more conservative newspapers, but itmade for exciting reading. People flocked to the newsstands toread the Journal's rebel accounts, which described the conflictin the simple language of the Spanish villain and the Cuban hero.23

The World could have acted responsibly and depictedthe clash accurately for its readers. However, the rising circulationrates of both the World and the Journal during this period ofjingoism show that the drama made money for these newspapers,and the competition was too tight to throw the money away. Bothpapers lowered their standards so much that they routinely carriednews items directly off the pages of their rivals.

Using an old journalistic trick, Hearst caught the World inthe act. An article appeared in the Journal in 1898 describingthe death of Colonel Reflipe W. Thenuz, whose name was a refashioningof the phrase, "We pilfer the news." The next day, Pulitzer'spaper carried the item, being bold enough to add specific datelineinformation to make the story appear authentic. 24 The Journalcelebrated the gaffe for over a month while the World maintaineda "pained silence" on its blunder. 25

The explosion of the American battleship Maine in Havana harboron February 15, 1898, ensured that the U.S. would not be contentto watch the Cuban spectacle from the bleacher seats any more.Two hundred and sixty crew members died in the blast, and a Navyboard of inquiry examined the cause of the explosion. Many NewYork newspapers, including the Times, Tribune, Herald and EveningPost, counseled patience and peace for the time being. However,both the World and the Journal jumped on the jingo bandwagon,concurrently publishing a "suppressed cable" that saidthe explosion was not an accident. 26 The cable was later discoveredto have been manufactured. 27

The effect of the rabble rousing by the two largest newspapersin New York cannot be underestimated. The World claimed to havesold five million copies the week after the Maine disaster. 28The public clamor for President McKinley to declare war was enormousas a result of the tainted reports in the papers. And though theSpanish-American War proved "splendid" from a militarystandpoint, it did not hold up to contemporary moral scrutiny.

Unfortunately, the World would be linked forever in historywith Hearst's Journal under the banner of "yellow journalism"for the role it played in exacerbating the conflict. However,the conscious disregard for the facts was an aberration for Pulitzer,and his later correspondence revealed that the episode hauntedhim for the rest of his life. (See appendix for Hearst photo andexample of sensational World front page.)

Other examples of the World's conduct reveal the paper didnot always appeal to the lowest denominator. Ina case similar to Cuba, a situation in South America threatenedto turn into an international war. The discovery of gold in adisputed border area between Venezuela and British Guiana in 1895prompted the Venezuelan president to appeal to President Clevelandon the basis of the Monroe Doctrine. Many Americans resented theevidence of British imperialism, especially in the Western hemisphere.Cleveland delivered a fiery message to Congress denouncing theBritish policy and practically demanded that the U.S. be involvedin the arbitration process.

Instead of blindly supporting Cleveland, for whom he had foughtso diligently in the 1884 election, Pulitzer instructed his editorsto write balanced accounts of the situation. In one editorial,the World questioned the words of the President directly:

Is the integrity of Venezuela 'essential to the integrity ofour free institutions?' . . . There is no menace to the boundaryline. It is not our frontier. It is none of our business 29

Pulitzer proved his genius for influencing the popular moodin a feat he dreamed up for the Christmas issue of the World.In an effort to quell the fighting mood in the U.S., he had theWorld office send hundreds of telegrams to British leaders askingthem to cable collect with their statements of peaceful intent.

The responses ran on the front page. Portraits of the Princeof Wales and the Duke of York accompanied a reproduction of theirjoint cable, which said in part, "[We] earnestly trust .. . the present crisis will be arranged in a manner satisfactoryto both countries. . . ." The Christmas World included allthe elements of a classic Pulitzer appeal to the masses. It grabbedreaders' attention, educated them and then appealed to their emotions.The headline over the story read "PEACE AND GOOD WILL."30

Crusades

Pulitzer was always invigorated by the idea of influencingpublic opinion. He thought the most effective way to accomplishthis was to embark on journalistic crusades. A Pulitzer crusadeinvolved weeks upon weeks of news stories and editorial commentdevoted to one subject in order to bring about change. The driveto get Cleveland elected and the appeal to avoid war in Venezuelacan both be classified as crusades. Even the World's irresponsiblesupport of militarism against Spain in 1898 can be considereda crusade, although Pulitzer was compelled by his cynical, frenziedcompetition to take this stance.

The campaigns with the most journalistic integrity--those thatmight have won a prize for journalism, if one had existed--changedthe public mood or exposed a previously unknown case of corruption.Four examples of crusades on typical topics follow: the bond issueof 1896, the impure milk scandal of the early 1880s, the Statueof Liberty fund drive and the Panama exposé in 1908.

The World's coverage of a proposed government bondissue provides a fine illustration of the newspaper at its activistbest. In 1896, President Cleveland had floated government bondissues and had lost the country tremendous amounts of money becauseinvestors were not interested. When bonds failed to sell in thepast, he had personally asked rich financiers to accept the bondsat a lower price. Pulitzer learned of another such bond issuewhich J.P. Morgan, James Woodward of Hanover Bank and James Stillmanof National City Bank were seeking to buy at a discount rate.Forever distrustful of back room deals between government andthe rich, he ordered the World staff to work on a solution. 31

The editors sent 10,370 telegrams to banks and financiers tosecure guarantees that they would buy the bonds at their truemarket value. Over half of them replied, pledging $235 millioneven though $100 million worth of bonds were available. The followingappeared on the World editorial page on January 3:

[The World] asks you [Cleveland] to save the country from themischief, the wrong and the scandal of the pending bond deal.. . . Secrecy of negotiation . . . awakens, unjustly, suspicionsagainst the honor of the Government itself. . . . Trust the people,Mr. Cleveland! You can get all the gold you need . . . withoutpaying any premium at all. So sure are we of this that The Worldnow offers to head the list with a subscription of one milliondollars on its own account. 32

The above episode became an especially effective crusade, sincewithin a few days the bond issue sold publicly to overwhelmingdemand. Pulitzer was caught in the awkward position of profiting$50,000 from a purchase he had intended as a public service. Hekept the money.

While the rich were often a target of World crusades, the pooroften benefitted from them. The numerous articles on milk pricesduring the early 1880s provides an example of how Pulitzer, animmensely successful beneficiary of the capitalist system, foughtfor the less fortunate. Milk dealers routinely blended water andsolids like borax and soda into their product. In 1884, a witnessbefore the State Dairy Commissioner said the fraud was necessaryto satisfy public demand for cheap milk. Children of the poorsuffered most from the corruption, and many grew sick or diedfrom vitamin deficiencies.

Pulitzer knew that someone was skimming profits; he orderedthe World chase after the story. Reporters discovered that theprice of milk doubled and sometimes tripled from the farmers'hands to those of the city distributors. The blame lay with therailroad companies, which charged higher rates to transport milkthan other products of similar weight and bulk. The World pilloriedthose at fault: "Every family man who pays eight or ten centsa quart for milk has the satisfaction of knowing that a good portionof that sum is unjustly extorted by the railroad companies, andthat . . . his children [are] stinted in their natural and mosthealthful food." 33

The World editorial suggested that more regulation would permanentlyimprove milk quality. Pulitzer's recommendation preceded the Foodand Drug Administration by twenty years. He proved himself a visionary,advocating reforms for the poor even before the extravagant GildedAge had ended.

The bond issue and milk crusades proved that Pulitzer amountedto more than a sensationalist. Unlike some of his competitors,notably Hearst, who bit into scandal with the feeble manner ofa hyena picking over a carcass, Pulitzer never succumbed to cynicism.In most cases, he offered his readers hope by discovering problemsand then devising solutions.

The World's drive to bring the Statue of Liberty to the U.S.became a literal monument to Pulitzer's idealism. An immigranthimself, Pulitzer identified with the cause and also knew theWorld's many foreign-born readers would approve of the paper'sefforts. He had the World embark on a fundraiser to pay for theStatue pedestal. To incite enthusiasm, the editorial page lecturedon the subject: "It would be an irrevocable disgrace to NewYork City and the American Republic to have France send us thissplendid gift without our having provided even so much as a landingspace for it. . . . The World is a people's paper, and it nowappeals to the people to come forward and raise this money."34

The paper constantly lambasted the more wealthy members ofsociety for not contributing to the fund. 35 The final sum amountedto $101,091, and over 120,000 people had donated. These figuresare a testament to the masses of people who gave what they could,and to the persistence of the World. A poem by Emma Lazarus wona contest in the newspaper and has adorned the pedestal ever since.Its first line, "Give me your hungry, your tired, your poor,"could almost serve as a motto for the World newspaper, which providedmany immigrants with their first taste of American journalism.

Later in his life, Pulitzer got drawn into another adventurewhich did not have the patriotic appearance of the Statue of Libertyfundraiser. President Theodore Roosevelt attempted to have thegovernment sue the World proprietor for libel in 1908. The lawsuitscame on the heels of a scathing editorial which said the Presidenthad knowingly lied about the Panamanian revolution. Roosevelt,who was pleased at the results of the revolution but privatelyunhappy that the U.S. had to send warships to encourage it, becameincensed at the newspaper's impertinence. And he considered JosephPulitzer responsible.

The publisher, ironically, had no knowledge of the editorialwhen it first printed. He had been yachting off the coast of SouthCarolina when his aide read to him the headline, "WHO GOTTHE MONEY?" The article charged that Roosevelt had knownthe $40 million disbursement for rights to the canal was not paiddirectly to the French government, as had been claimed. The Worldsaid a U.S. syndicate was involved in the deal, and some moneyhad been given to American individuals with the President's knowledge.36

On December 15, Roosevelt decided to speak to Congress on thesubject of libel. That day, he walked quietly and then publiclythrashed Pulitzer with his big stick: "It is . . . a highnational duty to bring to justice this vilifier of the Americanpeople, this man who wantonly and wickedly and without one shadowof justification seeks to blacken the character of reputable privatecitizens and to convict the Government of his own country. . .." 37

Pulitzer must have been horrified, but he reacted bravely inthe face of despair. He dictated an editorial which printed thenext day: "Mr. Roosevelt is mistaken. He cannot muzzle TheWorld. . . . [Congress] should make a thorough investigation ofthe whole Panama transaction, that the full truth may be knownto the American people." 38 After pursuing suits in federaland state courts, Roosevelt finally succeeded in indicting Pulitzerand other journalists for libel in the District of Columbia. Thejudgement was moot, since none of the offenders could be arrestedunless they entered the city. The World trumpeted victory, proclaiming,"Mr. Roosevelt is an episode. The World is an institution."39

The Panamanian scandal was one crusade that Pulitzer did notwin. The might of the government officials and financiers ensuredthat the path of clues became too treacherous for other journaliststo follow. Pulitzer stood alone, loudly declaring that the governmenthad wronged its people, but failed to bring public clamor foran investigation.

Wasting of the Body

Inventing and coordinating the massive efforts of the Worldand the Post-Dispatch would have put a strain on any person. Pulitzer,who had never been known for a strong constitution, suffered underthe job-related stress. One day in 1887, he walked into the Worldoffices and picked up an article to edit. After he realized thathe could hardly see the page, he went home and consulted an oculist.The doctor diagnosed him with a broken blood vessel in one eyeand deterioration in the other. Pulitzer was advised to remainin a dark room for six weeks to have some chance at saving hissight. He followed these instructions, and it must have takenits toll on the previously active man and his family. 40

In addition to his poor eyesight, Pulitzer suffered from asthma,weak lungs, diabetes and exhaustion. His hearing grew more acuteas his eyes weakened. By the time he moved into a new mansionafter losing his eyesight, he was not able to sleep in the mainpart of the building. He had an annex built for his sleeping quarters,and the floor of the passage to the main house rested on rollersto minimize creaking.

After fighting his illness and exacerbating it through stressencountered because of the newspaper, he had to leave the headpost. An editorial in the October 16, 1890 issue stated: "Yieldingto the advice of his physicians, Mr. Joseph Pulitzer has withdrawnentirely from the editorship of the World. . . ." 41 Followinghis abdication of the throne of supreme influence over New York'sopinions, Pulitzer embarked on an around-the-world yachting journey,again on doctors' orders.

Physicians instructed him to avoid distress, especially thatwhich would ensue from contact with the office. Despite the neweditors' assertions that their former boss had "withdrawnentirely" from office politics, this was far from the case.Pulitzer left intimate instructions for his brother-in-law, WilliamH. Davis, upon leaving for the trip. The former editor demandedthat "nothing disagreeable or annoying unless of REAL IMPORTANCE"reach him during his voyage. Still, he left detailed directionsfor sending mail at each location of the journey 42

Pulitzer would never run the World from behind a desk in theoffice as he had in the past. However, through frequent telegramsand conferences, he managed to use a hands-on approach from greatdistances. Pulitzer would continue to retire in the future, mostnotably on his sixtieth birthday, April 10, 1907. He hosted twogrand dinners to commemorate the occasion and ran them in thesame manner he managed his newspapers--he was present at neitherparty. Members of the Post-Dispatch staff, prominent lawyers,officials and others made up the gathering of sixty at the banquetinghall of the Southern hotel in St. Louis. Another gathering ofsixty men took place simultaneously in New York at Delmonico's,the same posh restaurant which Pulitzer had pilloried James Blainefor patronizing.

Pulitzer directed the affair from Cap Martin, France, sendingself-congratulatory cables to both assemblies. The one addressedto the St. Louis gathering read in part: "In retiring fromthe presidency [of the World] in favor of my son, Ralph, I wantto express to you . . . my sincere appreciation for the integrityand ability with which the Post-Dispatch has been so successfullyconducted. 43

Working for Pulitzer

Working for a man as relentless as Pulitzer could be an alternatelyrewarding and terrifying experience. His many telegrams and lettersto subordinates reveal that he was quick to offer both sanctionand praise, depending on his quick judgement. When someone performedpoorly in the office, the publisher did not waste time improvinghis organization. Henry W. Moore sent correspondence notifyingPulitzer that his wishes had been followed regarding one employee."I have written Austin and he will cease his connection withthe P-D on the 28th." 44

To motivate editors, he often assigned two competent men topositions with overlapping authority. He often asked the men toreport on each other in writing. Pulitzer tried not to encouragebackbiting, but he did insist on accuracy. If one employee complainedharshly of another's performance, he would forward the reportto the offending loafer. He sent the following letter to editorDon Seitz a few days after the Maine disaster:

"[B]e kind enough to tell me exactly who of the Big Four--thetwo Merrils, Norris, & yourself--was at the office Sundayand Monday--and at what hours-- Another test of headship--andheartship--I don't remember two days of greater importance."45

The letter reveals the publisher's ambivalence about revealinghis motives. He readily admitted that he thought employees workedmore efficiently in a competitive atmosphere. Also, most of hisemployees knew that they were expected to spy on one another.Pulitzer thought the system worked, but over the years he lostmany competent editors who disagreed with his methods.

Another way the publisher sought to make his newspapers strongerwas by encouraging thrift. John A. Cockerill, Managing Editorat the World, wrote Pulitzer on many subjects regarding the officein June 1885. Cockerill explained why the paper was sufferingfrom poor print quality: "The types are absolutely worn out."46

Although Pulitzer sometimes skimped on materials and supplies,he never tried to save money on salaries. In December 1884, IgnazKapper, Business Manager of the Post-Dispatch, wrote to confirmthat he had followed the boss's orders: "I have paid Mr.Moore $300 and . . . I have given Mr. Taylor $100 with your compliments.Both will write you, I suppose, but they also desire me to expresstheir thanks." Moore did write back thanking Pulitzer andwished him a happy New Year. 47

Leaving an Endowment

As his ability to watchdog over his paper declined during the1890s, Pulitzer began to look for ways to ensure his work wouldbe reflected in the future. In 1892, he approached Seth Low, Presidentof Columbia University, with a plan for a school of journalism.Low presented the plan to the school's trustees, but they declinedPulitzer's money.

In the summer of 1902 at his expansive Chatwold estate in BarHarbor, Maine, Pulitzer dictated a rough plan for endowing a schoolof journalism to Columbia University. "My idea," hestated, "is to recognize that journalism is, or ought tobe, one of the great and intellectual professions. . . ."48 That year, he re-opened negotiations with the school, whichhad appointed a new president in the interim. Nicolas Murray Butlerreceived the plan more warmly, even though he must have worriedthat a journalism school would adversely affect Columbia's reputation.

Pulitzer's 1902 outline for the journalism school includeda provision for "annual prizes to particular journalistsor writers for various accomplishments, achievements, and formsof excellence." 49 He realized in 1904 that he would putoff the execution of his plan until after his death to avoid squabblingover details with Butler, whose strong will matched his own. Pulitzeralso decided that the prizes would not be awarded until the journalismschool was up and running successfully for three years. Thus,the Columbia School of Journalism opened in 1912, one year followingthe death of its benefactor. The first prizes were awarded in1917.

Pulitzer's belief in a newspaper's independence has been reflectedin his prize ever since. Seventy-six of the awards in journalismhave gone to articles which exposed government graft and corruption,and articles on civil liberties abuses have garnered thirty-sixawards. 50

A typical award-winning article contains the classic elementsof a World crusade. It is fascinating, it educates readers and,most of all, it is a scoop. 51 It exemplifies the type of newsreporting Pulitzer loved. "I hate the idea of passing awayknown only as the proprietor of a paper," the publisher wroteto his doctor and personal friend, George Hosmer. 52

No one would have forgotten the man who revolutionized thenewspaper industry at the turn of the century, regardless of whathe endowed. But Pulitzer, who had bought and sold so many newspapersto get his start in St. Louis, knew that he had staked his claimin a transient business. His will put his son, Ralph, in chargeof the World. By 1931, the newspaper was bought by the Scripps-Howardchain and turned into the World-Telegram. The formidable Worldbuilding, which at the time of its construction had been the talleststructure in New York, was razed in 1955 to make room for a newapproach to the Brooklyn Bridge. 53

The Post-Dispatch, which Pulitzer had tried to sell so manytimes, has lasted to the present day. Friends in St. Louis approachedpossible buyers in his stead as early as 1885. Charles Gibsonwrote, "I had a business talk yesterday with [George W.]Fishback concerning the purchase of the Post-Dispatch . . . .I said it was useless to talk to you about any price less than$500,000." 54 Pulitzer's son, Joseph, served as an able proprietorof the Post-Dispatch following his father's death. The newspaper,the Pulitzer Prize and the Columbia School of Journalism reflectthe values of the man who wrote the words, "Accuracy, Accuracy,Accuracy" on the newsroom wall.

--- Footnotes

1. Ireland, Alleyne. An Adventure with a Genius: Recollectionsof Joseph Pulitzer (formerly, Joseph Pulitzer: Reminiscences ofa Secretary, 1914). New York: E.P. Dulton & Company, Inc.,1920. 110.

2. The first syllable of the family name is pronounced "pull,"not "pewl." Weaver, Paul H. News and the Culture ofLying. New York: The Free Press, 1994. 34.

3. Information for the entire "Background" chapterfrom the following sources: Rammelkamp, Julian S. Pulitzer's Post-Dispatch:1878-1883. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1967. 4-8. Swanberg,W.A. Pulitzer. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1967. 13-29.Weaver, Paul H. News and the Culture of Lying. New York: The FreePress, 1994. 33-36.

4. "Joseph Pulitzer: For the United States Senator fromNew York." Unnamed author. Text-fiche at Butler Library,Columbia University. 21-22. Source included the following description:"AN INTIMATE NARRATIVE Issued for reference libraries (especiallynewspaper "morgues" so-called), political memorandists,social arbiters and bibliophiles generally."

5. Juergens, George. Joseph Pulitzer and the New York World.Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1966. 332-34.

6. World, May 22, 1883. p.1 Different editions of the samenewspaper often varied widely in content at the turn of the century.The Evening and Sunday Worlds almost always carried more sensationalarticles and layouts than the morning World. Except as noted,citations refer to the morning World, the edition over which Pulitzerexerted the most control.

7. Weaver. News and Lying. 37.

8. Juergens. Pulitzer and World. 30.

9. World, March 30, 1884. p.1.

10. World, October 30, 1884. p.1. Ears first appeared in theJune 21, 1883 issue of the World.

11. Weaver. News and Lying. 45.

12. Weaver. News and Lying. 46.

13. Ireland. Recollections of J.P. 115-116.

14. Weaver. News and Lying. 59.

15. See the World, May 25, 1884, p.11 for a precursor of theWoman's Page, the "World of Women" column.

16. See the World, May 20, 1883, p.10 for the first appearanceof fiction in the Sunday edition.

17. World, May 17, 1905. p.4.

18. Seitz, Don C. Joseph Pulitzer: His Life and Letters. NewYork: Simon & Schuster, 1924. 271.

19. World, March 15, 1909. p.10.

20. Dulles, Foster Rhea. The United States Since 1865. AnnArbor: The University of Michigan Press, 1959. 136.

21. Swanberg, Pulitzer. 84.

22. World, October 30, 1884. p.1.

23. Swanberg. Pulitzer. 225.

24. World, July 2, 1898. p.1.

25. Swanberg. Pulitzer. 252.

26. World, February 17, 1898.

27. Swanberg. Pulitzer. 247.

28. World, March 2, 1898. p.1 ears.

29. World, December 21, 1895. p.1.

30. World, December 25, 1895. p.1.

31. Background material from Swanberg. Pulitzer. 199-201.

32. World, January 3, 1896.

33. World, September 23, 1883. p.4.

34. World, March 16, 1885. p.4.

35. See the World, April 12, 1885, p.1. and May 1, 1885, p.4for disapproval of the rich who failed to contribute.

36. Background from Swanberg. Pulitzer. 359-367.

37. World, December 16, 1908.

38. World, December 16, 1908.

39. World, February 18, 1909.

40. Swanberg. Pulitzer. 145.

41. World, October 16, 1890. p.4.

42. Swanberg. Pulitzer. 156.

43. "Story of the Dinner." Unnamed author. St. Louis:Woodward and Tiernan Printing Co. Text-fiche at Butler Library,Columbia University.

44. Henry W. Moore, Post-Dispatch Managing Editor, St. Louis,to J.P., New York, February 19, 1885. Pulitzer Collection, ButlerLibrary, Columbia University. 1883-1185 box, February 1885 folder.

45. J.P., New York, to Seitz, Don C., editor at the World,New York. February 18, 1898. Pulitzer Papers, Library of Congress.Quoted in Swanberg. Pulitzer. 244.

46. John A. Cockerill, New York, to J.P., June 30, 1885. PulitzerCollection, Butler Library, Columbia University. 1883-1885 box,June 1885 folder.

47. Ignaz Kappner, Post-Dispatch Business Manager, St. Louis,to J.P., New York, December 26, 1884. Pulitzer Collection, ButlerLibrary, Columbia University. 1883-1885 box, December 1884 folder.

48. Joseph Pulitzer Papers, Special Collections, Columbia University.Quoted in Hohenberg, John. The Pulitzer Prizes. New York: ColumbiaUniversity Press, 1974. 10. (Unable to find original since secondarysource did not include specific date.)

49. Joseph Pulitzer Papers, Special Collections, Columbia University.Quoted in Hohenberg. Pulitzer Prizes I. 10. (Unable to find originalsince secondary source did not include specific date.)

50. Hohenberg, John. The Pulitzer Prize Story II. New York:Columbia University Press, 1980. 8.

51. The conclusion represents the author's subjective opinionafter reading both Hohenberg books.

52. J.P., aboard Liberty, to George Hosmer. January 7, 1911.Quoted in Seitz. Life and Letters.

53. Swanberg. Pulitzer. 415-18.

54. Charles Gibson, St. Louis, to J.P., New York, May 21, 1885.Pulitzer Collection, Butler Library, Columbia University. 1883-1885box, May 1885 folder.