All the News that’s Unfit to Print: How things were and how they were reported
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his book All the News Unfit to Print:How things were and how they were reported by Eric Burns is a fascinating look into journalism history. Filled with anecdotes, little know facts, and more than a bit of history. Burns covers all sorts of incidences where outside factors influenced whether or not a story was published or news covered up, going all the way back to colonial times. Only our reaction to it has changed since the Watergate incident. Where we used to accept the idea of concealment of facts for the “good of the country” now we now demand to know everything about everyone. Thus the advent of celebrity journalism.
There are surprising anecdotes here concerning every thing from the minor incident such as a woman, Miss Polly Baker whom Benjamin Franklin invented to point out the hypocrisy of punishing unwed mothers while letting the fathers get off with no punishment or stigma, nor even the requirement to help financially, to the major incidents, such as a young reporter interviewing Kaiser Wilhelm II, who said that he expected to be involved in a war with England within a few months. The young reporter not sure of what to do, went to his editors, who told him to go to the then President, Theodore Roosevelt, who both knew the Kaiser, and was aware of the situation. His advice was to not print the story. And six months later Germany and England were at war. This would never be tolerated today.
He also speaks of the unspoken conspiracy of the press not to show FDR’s wheelchair nor any signs of weakness in him. As they felt that America need a strong figure at the helm. It’s reported that 35,000 pictures were taken of FDR, but 34,998 showed no signs of his wheelchair or braces.
Burns also covers sex scandals that were well known in the press but not publicly revealed ,as well as cases of Congressmen who were so drunk they couldn’t stand up during votes, and that it was publicly known but not revealed to the voting public.
For anyone, who’s interested in the history of reporting and manipulation of the news media it’s a great book.
All the News Unfit to Print: How Things Were and How They Were Reported by Eric Burns is highly recommended.
Title:All the News that’s Unfit to Print Author: Eric Burns Publisher: Hoboken, N.J. : John Wiley & Sons, 2009. Format: Hardcover Publication Date: 2009
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1Melinda
wrote on 31 July 2009 at 10:46
I read an advertisement for this book not too long ago–in either the New Yorker or Harpers–can’t remember which, since I subscribe to both. I wanted to read it–and now, after reading your fine review, I want to read it even more. And I shall. Sounds like a fun book to take up to Maine with me in a couple of weeks.
Melinda
2Ron
wrote on 1 August 2009 at 15:31
It’s a great book for a vacation, it’s episodic nature lends itself to that.