Muckrakers in US Politics and Journalism

Muckrakers in US Politics and Journalism Janet Hopkins By definition Muckrakers was the name given to US journalists and other writers who exposed corruption in politics and business in the early 20th century. The term was first used by Theodore Roosevelt in 1906. Typically these journalists Muckrakers attacked established institutions, businesses, and leaders. In modern day it would be called investigative journalism. It is said that muckrakers and their intrepid reporting style had opened the eyes of many readers to the unknown harsh side of industrial capitalism. (Perry, 2004) Muckrakers were to some named heroes. (It may be a clichà ©, but it was all too true for journalists at the turn of the century. The print revolution enabled publications to increase their subscriptions dramatically. What appeared in print was now more powerful than ever. Writing to Congress in hopes of correcting abuses was slow and often produced zero results. Publishing a series of articles had a much more immediate impact. Collectively called MUCKRAKERS, a brave cadre of reporters exposed injustices so grave they made the blood of the average American run cold.) (unknown, 2008-2016) Muckrakers effected business and politics in ways no one could have imagined. They wrote stories and investigated to blow the top off what some would call scandals and secrets. They called out people and businesses for fraud and corruption. (The first to strike was Lincoln Steffens. In 1902, he published an article in MCCLURES magazine called TWEED DAYS IN ST. LOUIS. Steffens exposed how city officials worked in league with big business to maintain power while corrupting the public treasury. ) (unknown, 2008-2016) After the publication from Lincoln Steffens more and more journalists published articles and even a book to follow. Soon public outcry demanded reform of city government and gave strength to the progressive ideas of a city commission or city manager system. (unknown, 2008-2016) There is one Muckraker that stands out from the others due to the stir he made with his publication THE JUNGLE. Upton Sinclair, an avowed socialist who hoped to illustrate the horrible effects of capitalism on the workers in the Chicago meatpacking industry. (unknown, 2008-2016) (The book detailed workers sacrificing their fingers and nails by working with acid, losing limbs, catching diseases, and toiling long hours in cold, cramped conditions. He hoped the public outcry would be so fierce that reforms would soon follow.) (unknown, 2008-2016) (Sinclair also uncovered the contents of the products being sold to the general public. Spoiled meat was covered with chemicals to hide the smell. Skin, hair, stomach, ears, and nose were ground up and packaged as head cheese. Rats climbed over warehouse meat, leaving piles of excrement behind. Sinclair said that he aimed for Americas heart and instead hit its stomach. Even President Roosevelt, who coined the derisive term muckraker, was propel led to act. Within months, Congress passed the PURE FOOD AND DRUG ACT and the MEAT INSPECTION ACT to curb these sickening abuses.) (unknown, 2008-2016) As you can imagine this affected businesses, politics, and citizens in a negative way. By the time the muckrakers were through, no one could doubt the reality of corruption between business and government was a historical fact. Not a single person could doubt the terrible consequences of this system for human lives in a time of untrammeled corporate greed. (Oppenheimer, 2017) The Muckrakers goal was to uncover such things as bribery, political corruption, fraud, and anything wrong with the government. Things the people of these cities should be aware of or know about that are kept secret by our leader or people in a seat of power. Muckrakers targeted many turn-of-the-century injustices brought on by the large increase of immigrants, the rapid growth of the cities, unregulated big business and the influence of political machines, as well as many other social problems. (Click, 2003-2017) The muckrakers exposed corruption in business, including unfair trusts, insurance fraud and dangers of patent medicines, were exposed. Muckrakers also criticized abuses of power in politics and government. (Click, 2003-2017) In most cases, muckraking articles took on a very serious nature. Magazine editors would often go to great lengths to check the facts as they were reported in their publications. Some muckrakers even lived in the slums they wrote about or worked in the factories they investigated. The factual nature of the muckrakers articles leant credibility to the message the authors were sending to the American readers. (Click, 2003-2017) Muckrakers are still around today you really just dont here that term too much. In the progressive era muckrakers exposed so much and did what they could to inform the people of America. We still see that today on news channels, in papers, even on social media such as Facebook. Just this past election things were exposed like scandals, and fake votes or votes being changed. We see and hear it all around us. That is why these people weather called muckrakers or just investigative journalists are sometimes named heroes. People of America need to know the truth about stuff. We need to know the corrupt horrids of our society so we can be cautious. If it wasnt for them we would all be blind to things around us. References Click, L. (2003-2017). The Muckrakers of the Progressive Era: Definition and Influence. Retrieved from study.com: http://study.com/academy/lesson/the-muckrakers-of-the-progressive-era-definition-and-influence.html Oppenheimer, M. (2017). The Rise and Fall of the Muckrakers. Retrieved from New Politics: http://newpol.org/content/rise-and-fall-muckrakers Perry, E. L. (2004). Exposes and excess: Muckraking in america, 1900/2000. Retrieved from proquest: https://search.proquest.com/docview/205353999?accountid=10435 unknown. (2008-2016). muckrakers. Retrieved from us history: http://www.ushistory.org/us/42b.asp

Adversity and What We Gain From It :: Personal Narratives Sports Medicine Essays

Adversity and What We Gain From It In all parts of life there are periods of adversity that we must face, the real challenge however, is what and how we gain from conquering those trials. There have been many times that I have been faced with adversity, it has happened in all aspects of my life at one time or another. Whether it is dealing with the ups and downs of hockey or balancing the pressure that comes with an elite hockey schedule and high school, there are always obstacles. Some of these challenges can bring about positive effects that influence the path of one’s life. In one such experience of mine, the amount of adversity was not near as great as the positive out come that came from my experience. It happened when I was thirteen, I suffered a hockey injury that helped me to realize the area I wanted to study and hopefully have career in. The time it took me to rehabilitate my shoulder was a time of great learning for me but it also came with a great deal of adversity. It was an injury that sidelined me for weeks while at the same time pushed me on my way to a new work ethic and a new enthusiasm for learning. When I was in grade seven, I was playing my second year of peewee hockey and playing for my junior high school team as well. The junior high league allowed checking and the peewee league did not. Because of this I was not accustomed to the new aspect of hockey brought on by checking. I was injured in an intense game against our rival junior high, which was filled with plenty of checking. I was on the receiving end of a brutal check from behind which is something not permitted in any league, the player that hit me received a penalty and a game expulsion. I tried to continue playing but it was no use, I was barely able to raise my arm. I ended up in the hospital where the doctor informed me that I had severely dislocated my left shoulder and would have to miss up to three weeks of play. I had never been forced to miss hockey because of an injury before and it was the worst news I had ever heard. The time I missed from hockey was one of the most difficult periods I had been through up t o that point.

National Push for Accountability in Schools

The pace of change dictates that schools should provide high quality learning standards to students. It requires that the school system should improve their learning approaches to enhance academic achievements of students. In this connection policymakers at the federal, state, and local levels have worked to increase accountability of the school system on the premise that the same plays a vital role in improving learning standards of students and society as well. This then pave the way to the recognition of evaluation of school performance to improve standards of learning and achievements of students.The system of accountability requires schools to define what students should know and be able to do and to measure progress and gaps in students’ achievement. It facilitates the attainment of the desired education standards anchored on quality content and high learning standards. Developing appropriate content and student achievement standards are accordingly important part of sho wing policymakers and the public a return on their educational investment. However, accountability of schools for students learning and achievement is impossible without a clear, focused road map on the achievement standards and what and how well students are to learn from kindergarten through graduation.Many states have developed content and achievement standards without involving stakeholders and teachers. They also have not considered how their standards are to be implemented, measured and tied to accountability. Developing content and student achievement standards without considerable contribution and input from a variety of sources is fatal as there is no sense of ownership as well as responsibility from the stakeholders and agencies not represented. The standards set are then viewed as bias and one-sided thereby defeating its purpose and rendering weak implementation of the system.Accountability system utilizes results from standardized tests to evaluate performance of student s and schools, and provide sanctions, rewards or interventions for schools, educators or students. This system involves consistent monitoring and evaluation of the students’ and schools’ performance that it requires active participation of the educators, parents, stakeholders, and policy makers. The ripple effect of the system requires that these concerned people and stakeholders should be consistently committed to the purpose, implementation, and evaluation in order to keep track of students and schools’ performance and eventually facilitate desired continuous improvement of schools’ performance standards.According to Kate Nolan (2002), â€Å"it is not enough to believe that all children can learn. All elements of the system must be held accountable for the success of all children†.   The effect of the accountability system in school is all encompassing that Kate Nolan further noted that, â€Å"the improvement in school performance requires imp rovement in all stakeholders’ performance†. Thus change in the system should not be an isolated case for the school sector but also on the part of the stakeholders as accountability requires their active participation and commitment for the system to work.It is noted that the accountability system is designed to be a tool for instituting changes in schools that would positively benefit the students, parents, community and the country in general. This system provides opportunities and avenues for joint effort of all people and agencies concerned to raise the standards of the education system thereby improving school performance and learning of the students. The intention of the program is indeed noble and reflects an effort to bring education system to respond to the fast changing demands of the learning community, yet a lot of areas need thorough consideration and re-evaluation.According to Chuch Poochigian, â€Å"the education system reforms undertaken in the past yea rs have greatly enhanced the ability of the parents to monitor the performance of their children as well as of the school where they are enrolled, however, the only way that the drive for accountability in education will be truly successful is if parents utilize the new tools offered to them to ensure that their children receive quality education.† This statement should give one an idea that accountability should not be limited to the school sector only.According to Douglas B. Reeves (2002), â€Å"accountability must be viewed in a different way. It must consider and address the issues in congruence of the objectives and the strategies, specificity, relevance, respect for diversity, continuous improvement, and focus on achievement, not norms.† Accountability system is highly complex and involves a range of interconnected issues and design as well as technical issues on the implementation and evaluation aspect that needs further thorough study and reconsideration.Also it must be noted that no matter how enlightened or elegant the assessment devices, if the focus is limited to gathering and reporting data rather than skillful use of those data for learning and achievement enhancement of students, little improvement to school performance will result. Thus, the best way to know whether an accountability system is working is to see whether the school system it accounts for is moving from where it was to where it wants to be. From its first implementation, an accountability system requires not only internal implementation but also external monitoring.Indeed the national push for accountability dignifies the need to improve standards of school performance and would greatly benefit the students but the approach is insufficient and has undesirable side effects. Schools do not per se reject accountability as the same is an intrinsic responsibility, but an authentic approach to accountability must be formulated. A new set of principles must be created to gui de the reconstruction of accountability systems to better meet the needs of education and students, and to avoid the dangers often associated with current accountability systems. Further, collaboration and supportive effort of the school, stakeholders and policymakers must be promoted.Reference ListNolan, K. (2002). Excerpts from using accountability to build strong schools. EducationCommission of States. Retrieved February 20, 2007 from http://www.ecs.orgPoochigian, C. School accountability reforms. Retrieved February 23, 2007 fromhttp://www.reasons.org/pb34.pdf.Reeves, D. (2002). Accountability based-reforms should lead to a better teaching andlearning-period. Harvard Education System. Retrieved February 20, 2007 fromhttp://www.edletter.org/past/issues2002-ma/reeves.shtml.

The Effect Of Advertising On The Brain Essay - 1804 Words

Finding our way around town can sometimes be difficult, that is why the GPS was such an efficient item to have in an automobile. But what happens when we aren’t able to trust our GPS? Leaving the house, and plugging in the address to your favorite McDonalds and in turn being lead to a Wendy’s. This is very similar to the effect advertisements have on the brain. Marketers use the term â€Å"intercept† when they discuss making contact with their audience; they intercept our own thoughts and swap them out with their own. Advertising has become so effective that there isn’t really a limit to how much companies will pay for their advertising. Ten years ago Google swooped up YouTube for the small price of one point six five billion dollars. The question is, why would Google pay so much for a company that is just starting up? Google understood how effective of an advertisement tool YouTube would be in the near future. This is a perfect example of how marketers are not afraid to spend money in order to make money, and they know that they will make money because of how effective their advertisements are. Malicious advertising strategies have become so effective that they can influence our thinking process. Our money is the fuel big businesses run on, without it they would surly die. In a world where a product’s uniqueness spans only a few months, each product must seem unique and different without being either. So, marketers stopped trying to sell us a product and began to sell usShow MoreRelatedEssay on The Danger of Subliminal Advertising1438 Words   |  6 Pagesand even Spam mail have become a daily part of the lives of many citizens. However, most people do not realize the sinister methods advertisers and corporations employ with the media in order to obtain a profit. The use of subliminal and negative advertising has increased immensely and shows no plan of stopping anytime soon. 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