Question

Who and what was the "yellow press" and how did they/it contribute to u.s. expansion?

Answer 1

The yellow press was a form of sensationalist journalism that impacted public opinion and played a significant role in fostering support for U.S. expansion during the late 19th century, especially regarding the Spanish-American War.

Step-by-step explanation:

The term yellow press refers to sensationalistic and often exaggerated journalism that became prominent in the late 19th century, known for stirring public emotion and influencing public opinion. The most notable publishers associated with the yellow press were William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pulitzer, who used bold and sensational headlines to sell more newspapers and influence the American populace. This was done to pay off the costs of expensive state-of-the-art printing presses by captivating the American people.

During the period leading up to and during the Spanish-American War, yellow journalism played a critical role in shaping public opinion and generating support for U.S. expansion. This form of journalism emphasized Spanish atrocities in Cuba and contributed to the public outcry that led to U.S. intervention, suggesting that the techniques of yellow journalism were akin to modern click-bait and fake news. Notably, though Pulitzer later established a prize for journalistic excellence, during this time, newspapers were not always trying to change public perspective as much as reinforcing existing opinions.

Yellow journalism fed into the narrative of Manifest Destiny in the 1890s, which was the belief that the expansion of the United States was both justified and inevitable. This period of journalism also raised questions about the challenges America faced in governing an empire, as it began to take on more territories.

Answer 2

Yellow press or amarillista press is a type of journalism that presents news with striking, scandalous or exaggerated headlines to try to increase their sales, although in general these news do not have any evidence (or scarce) and without a well-defined investigation. This type of sensationalist press includes headlines of catastrophes and a large number of photographs with detailed information about accidents, crimes, adulteries and political entanglements. In the case of graphics or television, it is characterized by using shocking music, extremely saturated colors, mainly red and having your information disorganized.

The term originated during the "journalistic battle" between the newspaper New York World, by Joseph Pulitzer, and the New York Journal, by William Randolph Hearst, from 1895 to 1898, and can be referred to specifically at that time. Both newspapers were accused, by other more serious publications, of magnifying certain kinds of news to increase sales and pay those involved to get exclusive. The New York Press newspaper coined the term "yellow journalism," in early 1897, to describe the work of both Pulitzer and Hearst. The success of the character The Yellow Kid in both newspapers contributed to this.