The History of Our Beloved Journalism

The North Star an ancient american
newspaper still tact until this day

Journalism, as defined by webster's dictionary, is the collection and editing of news for presentation through the media. Due to its great length, this article will focus on post- 1940 journalism in the United States; however, there is much more to explore regarding the history of journalism as a whole, as it dates back to, arguably, the 17th century. To clarify, Journalism has always been the way to formally inform the public through hard facts. 

World War II led the the exponential expansion of broadcast media within the United States. When the soldiers shipped off to the war, so did many journalists as well. Many journalists were charged with the task of evoking a vivid picture in a reader or listeners mind when reporting their stories. In this time period, Edward R. Murrow and his team were national recognized for just that. They were able to captivate a radio listener through their detailed recounts of the battles that many americans wished to see. 

During the 1950s, broadcast media became the most prevalent way to inform the public. This is why is the 1960s, a decade of extreme turmoil, the united states was bombarded with constant news broadcast. During this time period, the media was covering: the civil rights movement, the fight against post WWII conservative values, the assassination of President Kennedy, and the war on Vietnam. Journalist were attempting to cover every aspect of existence. Also, the first 24 hour broadcast occurred when President Kennedy was assassinated. Journalism and the news were taking great strides toward the future.

After this, media began to cover the fight for sexual equality and drug protest. From then until now journalist have covered every major event in american history; However, many criticize journalism's bias on what stories to publish. Journalism is not perfect but I can gladly say that, everyday, we take great strides to make news as objective as possible.