Journalism and Corruption in Chicago, 1912-1931

Tom Arnold-Forster

doi:10.1017/S0018246X21000868

Journalism and Corruption in Chicago, 1912-1931

Tom Arnold-Forster^*

^*Corresponding author for this work

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Abstract

The publicity of journalism has long been central to anti-corruption politics in the United States. This article explores relations between journalism and corruption in early twentieth-century Chicago and shows how newspapers could be used by corrupt politicians to consolidate and even constitute their power. By examining the three-term mayoralty of William Hale ‘Big Bill’ Thompson, the article considers a range of media strategies, from press-baiting to propaganda and boosterism, that fuelled public controversies about press hypocrisy and limited journalism's anti-corruption potential. Thompson's Chicago sheds light on broader debates about the politics of journalism in capitalist societies with commercial media environments; it also helps illuminate wider histories of corruption in America.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1374-1396
Journal	HISTORICAL JOURNAL
Volume	65
Issue number	5
Early online date	27 Jan 2022
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1017/S0018246X21000868
Publication status	E-pub ahead of print - 27 Jan 2022

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Journalism and Corruption in Chicago, 1912-1931

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