USA HISTORY

AMERICAN IMPERIALISM(1890 1919)

AMERICAN IMPERIALISM

[SOURCES]
What had a large influence on the opinion of US citizens regarding the Spanish American War?

(A) ** Yellow Journalism

(B) Fake News

(C) Presidential speeches

(D) Congressional legislation

EXPLANATIONS BELOW

Concept note-1: -Yellow journalism was a style of newspaper reporting that emphasized sensationalism over facts. During its heyday in the late 19th century it was one of many factors that helped push the United States and Spain into war in Cuba and the Philippines, leading to the acquisition of overseas territory by the United States.

Concept note-2: -The Spanish-American War, while dominating the media, also fueled the United States’ first media wars in the era of yellow journalism. Newspapers at the time screamed outrage, with headlines including, “Who Destroyed the Maine? $50, 000 Reward, ” “Spanish Treachery” and “Invasion!”

Concept note-3: -Joseph Pulitzer fought for readership with his nemesis, William Randolph Hearst, in the mid-1890s. Both crossed the line into “yellow journalism” during the Spanish-American War.

Concept note-4: -What was the main reason that yellow journalism strongly affected American attitudes about Cuba and the Spanish-American War? They blamed Spain for the explosion and called for the US to declare war. How did newspapers that used yellow journalism react when the USS Maine exploded in Cuba in 1898?