Ida B Tarbell

Ida B. Tarbell: The Muckraking Journalist Who Took on Standard Oil

Introduction:

Forget the glamorous image of today's investigative journalists. Ida B. Tarbell, a pioneer of American journalism, paved the way for modern investigative reporting with grit, determination, and a relentless pursuit of truth. This in-depth look into the life and work of Ida B. Tarbell will explore her groundbreaking exposé of Standard Oil, her impact on the progressive era, and her enduring legacy as a formidable force for social change. We'll delve into her writing style, her personal life, and the challenges she faced as a woman navigating a male-dominated field. Prepare to be inspired by the story of a woman who dared to challenge power and helped shape the course of American history.


1. The Early Life and Influences of Ida B. Tarbell:

Ida Minerva Tarbell (November 5, 1857 – January 6, 1944) was born in Erie, Pennsylvania, a town heavily influenced by the oil industry. Her father, a Baptist minister, instilled in her a strong sense of morality and social justice, which profoundly shaped her future work. While her family faced financial struggles, her education was prioritized, highlighting the importance of knowledge and critical thinking. This early exposure to both the prosperity and the exploitation within the oil industry provided fertile ground for her later investigative reporting. Her education at Allegheny College and her subsequent postgraduate studies further honed her intellectual curiosity and writing skills, providing the foundation for her successful career as a journalist and author. She also benefitted greatly from her time spent working as a teacher, sharpening her ability to clearly communicate complex ideas. This early life, characterized by both hardship and opportunity, is key to understanding the fierce independence and unwavering ethical compass that defined her professional life.


2. The History-Making Exposé: Ida Tarbell's The History of the Standard Oil Company

This monumental 19-part series, serialized in McClure's Magazine between 1902 and 1904, remains Tarbell's most famous work. It wasn't just a chronicle of Standard Oil's growth; it was a meticulous and devastating dissection of its monopolistic practices, ruthless tactics, and unethical business dealings. Tarbell meticulously documented John D. Rockefeller's rise to power, revealing the company's systematic crushing of competitors through predatory pricing, bribery, and intimidation. She painstakingly researched the company's history, interviewing former employees, competitors, and others affected by Standard Oil’s actions. The series sparked outrage amongst the public, contributing significantly to the public outcry that eventually led to the Supreme Court's 1911 decision to break up Standard Oil into smaller, competing companies. The impact of this exposé extended far beyond the realm of business, influencing the rise of the progressive movement and setting a new standard for investigative journalism. Tarbell's work wasn't simply reporting; it was activism through meticulous research and compelling narrative.


3. Beyond Standard Oil: Ida Tarbell's Broader Contributions to Journalism and Society:

Tarbell’s work extended far beyond her famous Standard Oil exposé. She was a prolific writer, covering a wide range of topics including business, politics, and social issues. She wrote biographies, including one on Abraham Lincoln, demonstrating her versatility and deep understanding of American history and politics. Her commitment to accuracy and fairness, coupled with her ability to present complex information in an engaging and accessible manner, made her work influential not only among the intellectual elite but also amongst the general public. This accessibility was crucial in mobilizing support for progressive causes. She championed women's rights and participated actively in various social reform movements, using her platform to advocate for positive social change. Her legacy is not just one of investigative journalism but of social activism woven seamlessly into her reporting.

4. Ida B. Tarbell's Writing Style and Legacy:

Tarbell’s writing style is characterized by its clarity, precision, and engaging narrative. She skillfully blended factual reporting with compelling storytelling, making her work accessible to a wide audience. This was a critical element of her success, as it allowed her to effectively reach the public and influence their opinions on important social and economic issues. She avoided overly sensationalized language, instead relying on the power of meticulously researched facts to expose the truth. Her legacy continues to inspire generations of journalists, emphasizing the importance of thorough research, ethical reporting, and the power of journalism to effect meaningful social change. She's remembered as a role model for investigative journalists, demonstrating that powerful narratives can be crafted using meticulous facts and a commitment to exposing truth, regardless of the power of those being investigated. Her impact resonates in the modern investigative journalism landscape, a testament to the enduring power of her work.


5. Challenges and Triumphs: Ida B. Tarbell as a Woman in Journalism:

Working as a female journalist in the late 19th and early 20th centuries presented significant challenges for Tarbell. A male-dominated field, she encountered sexism and gender bias throughout her career. Yet, despite these obstacles, she persevered, achieving remarkable success. Her determination, intelligence, and exceptional writing skills allowed her to overcome many of the challenges she faced, proving that talent and hard work could transcend societal barriers. Her success story serves as an inspiration for aspiring female journalists and demonstrates the importance of perseverance in the face of adversity. Her legacy is a beacon of hope, showcasing the potential for women to excel even in fields where they historically faced significant obstacles.


Book Outline: Ida B. Tarbell: A Life in Journalism

Introduction: A brief overview of Ida B. Tarbell's life and impact.
Chapter 1: Early Life and Education: Focusing on her upbringing in Erie, Pennsylvania, and her educational journey.
Chapter 2: Early Career and the Rise of McClure's Magazine: Exploring her early journalistic work and her time at McClure's.
Chapter 3: The Standard Oil Exposé: A detailed examination of her investigation and its impact.
Chapter 4: Beyond Standard Oil: Other Writings and Contributions: Covering her diverse body of work and social activism.
Chapter 5: Legacy and Influence: Examining her lasting impact on journalism and society.
Conclusion: A summary of Tarbell's life and her enduring relevance.


Article Explaining Each Point of the Outline (This section would be significantly expanded in the full blog post. The following are brief summaries for illustrative purposes.):

Introduction: A hook grabbing the reader's attention and outlining the scope of the biography.
Chapter 1: Detailing her family background, education, and early influences that shaped her journalistic pursuits.
Chapter 2: Chronicling her early career and the supportive environment offered by McClure's Magazine.
Chapter 3: A comprehensive exploration of the research, writing, and publication of her Standard Oil exposé, including the reactions it evoked.
Chapter 4: Discussing her other notable works, her contributions to social reform, and her involvement in women's rights movements.
Chapter 5: Analyzing her impact on investigative journalism, the progressive era, and her enduring legacy as a strong female figure in a male-dominated field.
Conclusion: Summarizing her achievements and reflecting on her lasting contribution to American society and journalism.


9 Unique FAQs:

1. What was Ida B. Tarbell's most famous work?
2. How did Ida B. Tarbell's upbringing influence her journalism?
3. What impact did Tarbell's Standard Oil exposé have on the American economy?
4. What were some of the challenges Ida B. Tarbell faced as a woman in journalism?
5. How did Ida B. Tarbell's writing style contribute to her success?
6. What other significant works did Ida B. Tarbell author besides her Standard Oil exposé?
7. How did Ida B. Tarbell contribute to the progressive movement?
8. What is the lasting legacy of Ida B. Tarbell's work?
9. Where can I find Ida B. Tarbell's complete works today?


9 Related Articles:

1. Muckrakers of the Progressive Era: An overview of the prominent investigative journalists of the time, including Tarbell.
2. The History of Investigative Journalism: Tracing the evolution of investigative reporting and Tarbell's place within it.
3. John D. Rockefeller and Standard Oil: A biography of Rockefeller and an examination of Standard Oil's business practices.
4. The Sherman Antitrust Act and its Impact: An analysis of the legislation and how it affected corporations like Standard Oil.
5. Women in Journalism: A History: Exploring the challenges and triumphs of female journalists throughout history.
6. The Progressive Era in America: An overview of the social and political changes that occurred during this period.
7. The Impact of McClure's Magazine: An examination of the magazine's role in shaping American journalism and public opinion.
8. Ida Tarbell's Biography of Abraham Lincoln: A review and analysis of her biographical work.
9. The Ethics of Investigative Journalism: A discussion of the moral considerations faced by investigative reporters.


This expanded blog post structure provides a comprehensive overview of Ida B. Tarbell's life and work, optimizing it for search engines while delivering valuable and engaging content to the reader. Remember to thoroughly research each section and cite sources appropriately.


  ida b tarbell: The History of the Standard Oil Company Ida Minerva Tarbell, 2020-09-28 One of the busiest corners of the globe at the opening of the year 1872 was a strip of Northwestern Pennsylvania, not over fifty miles long, known the world over as the Oil Regions. Twelve years before this strip of land had been but little better than a wilderness; its chief inhabitants the lumbermen, who every season cut great swaths of primeval pine and hemlock from its hills, and in the spring floated them down the Allegheny River to Pittsburg. The great tides of Western emigration had shunned the spot for years as too rugged and unfriendly for settlement, and yet in twelve years this region avoided by men had been transformed into a bustling trade centre, where towns elbowed each other for place, into which three great trunk railroads had built branches, and every foot of whose soil was fought for by capitalists. It was the discovery and development of a new raw product, petroleum, which had made this change from wilderness to market-place. This product in twelve years had not only peopled a waste place of the earth, it had revolutionised the world’s methods of illumination and added millions upon millions of dollars to the wealth of the United States. Petroleum as a curiosity, and indeed in a small way as an article of commerce, was no new thing when its discovery in quantities called the attention of the world to this corner of Northwestern Pennsylvania. The journals of many an early explorer of the valleys of the Allegheny and its tributaries tell of springs and streams the surfaces of which were found covered with a thick oily substance which burned fiercely when ignited and which the Indians believed to have curative properties. As the country was opened, more and more was heard of these oil springs. Certain streams came to be named from the quantities of the substance found on the surface of the water, as “Oil Creek” in Northwestern Pennsylvania, “Old Greasy” or Kanawha in West Virginia. The belief in the substance as a cure-all increased as time went on and in various parts of the country it was regularly skimmed from the surface of the water as cream from a pan, or soaked up by woollen blankets, bottled, and peddled as a medicine for man and beast. Up to the beginning of the 19th century no oil seems to have been obtained except from the surfaces of springs and streams. That it was to be found far below the surface of the earth was discovered independently at various points in Kentucky, West Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania by persons drilling for salt-water to be used in manufacturing salt. Not infrequently the water they found was mixed with a dark-green, evil-smelling substance which was recognised as identical with the well-known “rock-oil.” It was necessary to rid the water of this before it could be used for salt, and in many places cisterns were devised in which the brine was allowed to stand until the oil had risen to the surface. It was then run into the streams or on the ground. This practice was soon discovered to be dangerous, so easily did the oil ignite. In several places, particularly in Kentucky, so much oil was obtained with the salt-water that the wells had to be abandoned. Certain of these deserted salt wells were opened years after, when it was found that the troublesome substance which had made them useless was far more valuable than the brine the original drillers sought.
  ida b tarbell: All in the Day's Work: An Autobiography Ida M. Tarbell, 2015-07-13 This autobiography of the great female journalist and muckraker Ida M. Tarbell includes the following chapters: 1. My Start in Life 2. I Decide to Be a Biologist 3. A Coeducational College of the Eighties 4. A Start and a Retreat 5. A Fresh Start—A Second Retreat 6. I Fall in Love 7. A First Book—On Nothing Certain a Year 8. The Napoleon Movement of the Nineties 9. Good-Bye to France 10. Rediscovering My Country 11. A Captain of Industry Seeks My Acquaintance 12. Muckraker or Historian? 13. Off With the Old—On With the New 14. The Golden Rule in Industry 15. A New Profession 16. Women and War 17. After the Armistice 18. Gambling With Security 19. Looking Over the Country 20. Nothing New Under the Sun
  ida b tarbell: Ida Tarbell Kathleen Brady, 1989-10-15 In this first definitive biography of Ida Tarbell, Kathleen Brady, who is on the staff of Time, has written a readable and widely acclaimed book about one of America's great journalists.Ida Tarbell's generation called her a muckraker (the term was Theodore Roosevelt's, and he didn't intend it as a compliment), but in our time she would have been known as an investigative reporter, with the celebrity of Woodward and Bernstein. By any description, Ida Tarbell was one of the most powerful women of her time in the United States: admired, feared, hated. When her History of the Standard Oil Company was published, first in McClure's Magazine and then as a book (1904), it shook the Rockefeller interests, caused national outrage, and led the Supreme Court to fragment the giant monopoly.A journalist of extraordinary intelligence, accuracy, and courage, she was also the author of the influential and popular books on Napoleon and Abraham Lincoln, and her hundreds of articles dealt with public figures such as Louis Pateur and Emile Zola, and contemporary issues such as tariff policy and labor. During her long life, she knew Teddy Roosevelt, Jane Addams, Henry James, Samuel McClure, Lincoln Stephens, Herbert Hoover, and many other prominent Americans. She achieved more than almost any woman of her generation, but she was an antisuffragist, believing that the traditional roles of wife and mother were more important than public life. She ultimately defended the business interests she had once attacked.To this day, her opposition to women's rights disturbs some feminists. Kathleen Brady writes of her: [She did not have] the flinty stuff of which the cutting edge of any revolution is made. . . . Yet she was called to achievement in a day when women were called only to exist. Her triumph was that she succeeded. Her tragedy ws that she was never to know it.
  ida b tarbell: Ida M. Tarbell Emily Arnold McCully, 2014 The only biography of the pioneering investigative journalist Ida M. Tarbell for YA readers, lavishly illustrated with archival photographs and prints.
  ida b tarbell: The Business of Being a Woman Ida M. Tarbell, 2019-11-29 The Business of Being a Woman by Ida M. Tarbell. Published by Good Press. Good Press publishes a wide range of titles that encompasses every genre. From well-known classics & literary fiction and non-fiction to forgotten−or yet undiscovered gems−of world literature, we issue the books that need to be read. Each Good Press edition has been meticulously edited and formatted to boost readability for all e-readers and devices. Our goal is to produce eBooks that are user-friendly and accessible to everyone in a high-quality digital format.
  ida b tarbell: The Muckrakers Aileen Gallagher, 2006-01-15 Learn about the journalists who helped change America.
  ida b tarbell: Citizen Reporters Stephanie Gorton, 2020-02-18 A fascinating history of the rise and fall of influential Gilded Age magazine McClure’s and the two unlikely outsiders at its helm—as well as a timely, full-throated defense of investigative journalism in America The president of the United States made headlines around the world when he publicly attacked the press, denouncing reporters who threatened his reputation as “muckrakers” and “forces for evil.” The year was 1906, the president was Theodore Roosevelt—and the publication that provoked his fury was McClure’s magazine. One of the most influential magazines in American history, McClure’s drew over 400,000 readers and published the groundbreaking stories that defined the Gilded Age, including the investigation of Standard Oil that toppled the Rockefeller monopoly. Driving this revolutionary publication were two improbable newcomers united by single-minded ambition. S. S. McClure was an Irish immigrant, who, despite bouts of mania, overthrew his impoverished upbringing and bent the New York media world to his will. His steadying hand and star reporter was Ida Tarbell, a woman who defied gender expectations and became a notoriously fearless journalist. The scrappy, bold McClure's group—Tarbell, McClure, and their reporters Ray Stannard Baker and Lincoln Steffens—cemented investigative journalism’s crucial role in democracy. From reporting on labor unrest and lynching, to their exposés of municipal corruption, their reporting brought their readers face to face with a nation mired in dysfunction. They also introduced Americans to the voices of Willa Cather, Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Louis Stevenson, Joseph Conrad, and many others. Tracing McClure’s from its meteoric rise to its spectacularly swift and dramatic combustion, Citizen Reporters is a thrillingly told, deeply researched biography of a powerhouse magazine that forever changed American life. It’s also a timely case study that demonstrates the crucial importance of journalists who are unafraid to speak truth to power.
  ida b tarbell: Nellie Bly and Investigative Journalism for Kids Ellen Mahoney, 2015-05-01 A Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People 2016 In the late 1800s, the daring young reporter Elizabeth Cochrane—known by the pen name Nellie Bly—faked insanity so she could be committed to a mental institution and secretly report on the awful conditions there. This and other highly publicized investigative stunts laid the groundwork for a new kind of journalism in the early 1900s, called muckraking, dedicated to exposing social, political, and economic ills in the United States. In Nellie Bly and InvestigativeJournalism for Kids budding reporters learn about the major figures of the muckraking era: the bold and audacious Bly, one of the most famous women in the world in her day; social reformer and photojournalist Jacob Riis; monopoly buster Ida Tarbell; antilynching crusader Ida B. Wells; and Upton Sinclair, whose classic book The Jungle created a public outcry over the dangerous and unsanitary conditions of the early meatpacking industry. Young readers will also learn about more contemporary reporters, from Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein to Amy Goodman, who have carried on the muckraking tradition, and will get excited about the ever-changing world of journalism and the power of purposeful writing. Twenty-one creative activities encourage and engage a future generation of muckrakers. Kids can make and keep a reporter's notebook; write a letter to the editor; craft a great ideas box; create a Jacob Riis–style photo essay; and much more.
  ida b tarbell: The Jungle Upton Sinclair, 2024-06-18 The Jungle is a groundbreaking novel written by Upton Sinclair and published in 1906. The book is a powerful exploration of the harsh working conditions and social issues faced by immigrant workers in the Chicago stockyards during the early 20th century. The story follows the life of Jurgis Rudkus, a Lithuanian immigrant, and his family as they struggle to survive in the harsh urban jungle of Chicago. The novel is a compelling work of historical fiction that provides a vivid portrayal of the social and economic conditions of the time. Sinclair's detailed descriptions of the meatpacking industry, including the brutal working conditions, lack of labor regulations, and the exploitation of immigrant workers, exposed the dark side of capitalism and the need for reform. One of the most notable aspects of The Jungle is its social and political commentary. Sinclair was a socialist, and the book reflects his political views, with the protagonist eventually embracing socialist ideals. The novel played a significant role in the progressive movement and helped to spur the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act and the Meat Inspection Act in 1906. Despite its focus on social and political issues, The Jungle is also a compelling human drama. The characters are well-developed and relatable, and the story is engaging and emotionally resonant. The novel explores themes of poverty, exploitation, and the struggle for survival in a harsh and unforgiving world. The Jungle is a powerful and important work of literature that shines a light on the social and economic issues of the early 20th century. The novel is a must-read for anyone interested in history, politics, or social justice. Its enduring relevance and impact make it a classic of American literature.
  ida b tarbell: Hidden Human Computers: The Black Women of NASA Sue Bradford Edwards, Duchess Harris, 2017-01-01 Hidden Human Computers discusses how in the 1950s, black women made critical contributions to NASA by performing calculations that made it possible for the nation's astronauts to fly into space and return safely to Earth. Aligned to Common Core Standards and correlated to state standards. Essential Library is an imprint of Abdo Publishing, a division of ABDO.
  ida b tarbell: The Watchdog That Didn't Bark Dean Starkman, 2014-01-07 The Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter details “how the U.S. business press could miss the most important economic implosion of the past eighty years” (Eric Alterman, media columnist for The Nation). In this sweeping, incisive post-mortem, Dean Starkman exposes the critical shortcomings that softened coverage in the business press during the mortgage era and the years leading up to the financial collapse of 2008. He examines the deep cultural and structural shifts—some unavoidable, some self-inflicted—that eroded journalism’s appetite for its role as watchdog. The result was a deafening silence about systemic corruption in the financial industry. Tragically, this silence grew only more profound as the mortgage madness reached its terrible apogee from 2004 through 2006. Starkman frames his analysis in a broad argument about journalism itself, dividing the profession into two competing approaches—access reporting and accountability reporting—which rely on entirely different sources and produce radically different representations of reality. As Starkman explains, access journalism came to dominate business reporting in the 1990s, a process he calls “CNBCization,” and rather than examining risky, even corrupt, corporate behavior, mainstream reporters focused on profiling executives and informing investors. Starkman concludes with a critique of the digital-news ideology and corporate influence, which threaten to further undermine investigative reporting, and he shows how financial coverage, and journalism as a whole, can reclaim its bite. “Can stand as a potentially enduring case study of what went wrong and why.”—Alec Klein, national bestselling author of Aftermath “With detailed statistics, Starkman provides keen analysis of how the media failed in its mission at a crucial time for the U.S. economy.”—Booklist
  ida b tarbell: Early Innovators in Adult Education Huey B. Long, 2018-11-13 Originally published in 1991 this book analyses the input of those who made important contributions to the education of adults in the USA between 1607 and 1920. Examining the historical roots of adult education the book explores commonalities among innovators such as Cotton Mather, Benjamin Franklin, Margaret Fuller Ossoli and Ida Tarbell. It charts the development of important educational programmes including the American Lyceum, Chautauqua and local organizations such as mechanics' institutes and the Junto in Philadelphia.
  ida b tarbell: Pure America Elizabeth Catte, 2022-01-16 The highly anticipated follow-up to What You Are Getting Wrong About Appalachia explores the legacy of white supremacy in a small Virginia town
  ida b tarbell: Great Women of the Press Madelon Golden Schilpp, Sharon Murphy, 1983 Each of the 18 women whose stories un­fold in this unique work made heroic, profession-changing contributions to journalism. Covering nearly 300years, Schilpp and Murphy have elevated these women either from the obscurity of historical foot­notes (Elizabeth Timothy, 1700--1757) or from the frozen stuff of legend (Nellie Bly, Anne Newport Royall, Margaret Fuller); they have made their subjects working journalists whose careers and accomplishments were indeed heroic and inspiring, but human. Aside from Timothy, Royall, Fuller, and Elizabeth Cochrane Seaman (Nellie Bly), the authors have included Mary Katherine God­dard, colonial publisher; Sarah Josepha Hale, first women's magazine editor; Cornelia Walter, editor of the Boston Transcript; and Jane Grey Swisshelm, abolitionist, feminist, and journalist. Others include Jane Cunning­ham Croly (Jennie June); Eliza Nicholson (Pearl Rivers), publisher of the Picayune; Ida Minerva Tarbell, muckraker; Elizabeth Meriwether Gilmer (Dorothy Dix); Ida B. Wells-Barnett, crusader; Winifred Black Bon­fils (Annie Laurie), reformer; Rheta Child Dorr, freedom fighter; Dorothy Thompson, political columnist; Margaret Bourke-White, early photojournalist; and Marguerite Higgins, war correspondent.
  ida b tarbell: The Correspondents Judith Mackrell, 2021-11-02 The riveting, untold history of a group of heroic women reporters who revolutionized the narrative of World War II—from Martha Gellhorn, who out-scooped her husband, Ernest Hemingway, to Lee Miller, a Vogue cover model turned war correspondent. Thrilling from the first page to the last. —Mary Gabriel, author of Ninth Street Women Just as women are so often written out of war, so it seems are the female correspondents. Mackrell corrects this omission admirably with stories of six of the best…Mackrell has done us all a great service by assembling their own fascinating stories. —New York Times Book Review On the front lines of the Second World War, a contingent of female journalists were bravely waging their own battle. Barred from combat zones and faced with entrenched prejudice and bureaucratic restrictions, these women were forced to fight for the right to work on equal terms with men. The Correspondents follows six remarkable women as their lives and careers intertwined: Martha Gellhorn, who got the scoop on Ernest Hemingway on D-Day by traveling to Normandy as a stowaway on a Red Cross ship; Lee Miller, who went from being a Vogue cover model to the magazine’s official war correspondent; Sigrid Schultz, who hid her Jewish identity and risked her life by reporting on the Nazi regime; Virginia Cowles, a “society girl columnist” turned combat reporter; Clare Hollingworth, the first English journalist to break the news of World War II; and Helen Kirkpatrick, the first woman to report from an Allied war zone with equal privileges to men. From chasing down sources and narrowly dodging gunfire to conducting tumultuous love affairs and socializing with luminaries like Eleanor Roosevelt, Picasso, and Man Ray, these six women are captured in all their complexity. With her gripping, intimate, and nuanced portrait, Judith Mackrell celebrates these courageous reporters who risked their lives for the scoop.
  ida b tarbell: The Rope Alex Tresniowski, 2021-02-09 From New York Times bestselling author Alex Tresniowski comes a “compelling” (The Guardian) and “riveting” (The New York Times Book Review) true-crime thriller recounting the 1910 murder of ten-year-old Marie Smith, the dawn of modern criminal detection, and the launch of the NAACP. In the tranquil seaside town of Asbury Park, New Jersey, ten-year-old schoolgirl Marie Smith is brutally murdered. Small town officials, unable to find the culprit, call upon the young manager of a New York detective agency for help. It is the detective’s first murder case, and now, the specifics of the investigation and daring sting operation that caught the killer is captured in all its rich detail for the first time. Occurring exactly halfway between the end of the Civil War in 1865 and the formal beginning of the Civil Rights Movement in 1954, the brutal murder and its highly-covered investigation sits at the historic intersection of sweeping national forces—religious extremism, class struggle, the infancy of criminal forensics, and America’s Jim Crow racial violence. History and true crime collide in this “compelling and timely” (Vanity Fair) murder mystery featuring characters as complex and colorful as those found in the best psychological thrillers—the unconventional truth-seeking detective Ray Schindler; the sinister pedophile Frank Heidemann; the ambitious Asbury Park Sheriff Clarence Hetrick; the mysterious “sting artist,” Carl Neumeister; the indomitable crusader Ida Wells; and the victim, Marie Smith, who represented all the innocent and vulnerable children living in turn-of-the-century America. “Brisk and cinematic” (The Wall Street Journal), The Rope is an important piece of history that gives a voice to the voiceless and resurrects a long-forgotten true crime story that speaks to the very divisions tearing at the nation’s fabric today.
  ida b tarbell: Liberal Fascism Jonah Goldberg, 2008-01-08 “Fascists,” “Brownshirts,” “jackbooted stormtroopers”—such are the insults typically hurled at conservatives by their liberal opponents. Calling someone a fascist is the fastest way to shut them up, defining their views as beyond the political pale. But who are the real fascists in our midst? Liberal Fascism offers a startling new perspective on the theories and practices that define fascist politics. Replacing conveniently manufactured myths with surprising and enlightening research, Jonah Goldberg reminds us that the original fascists were really on the left, and that liberals from Woodrow Wilson to FDR to Hillary Clinton have advocated policies and principles remarkably similar to those of Hitler's National Socialism and Mussolini's Fascism. Contrary to what most people think, the Nazis were ardent socialists (hence the term “National socialism”). They believed in free health care and guaranteed jobs. They confiscated inherited wealth and spent vast sums on public education. They purged the church from public policy, promoted a new form of pagan spirituality, and inserted the authority of the state into every nook and cranny of daily life. The Nazis declared war on smoking, supported abortion, euthanasia, and gun control. They loathed the free market, provided generous pensions for the elderly, and maintained a strict racial quota system in their universities—where campus speech codes were all the rage. The Nazis led the world in organic farming and alternative medicine. Hitler was a strict vegetarian, and Himmler was an animal rights activist. Do these striking parallels mean that today’s liberals are genocidal maniacs, intent on conquering the world and imposing a new racial order? Not at all. Yet it is hard to deny that modern progressivism and classical fascism shared the same intellectual roots. We often forget, for example, that Mussolini and Hitler had many admirers in the United States. W.E.B. Du Bois was inspired by Hitler's Germany, and Irving Berlin praised Mussolini in song. Many fascist tenets were espoused by American progressives like John Dewey and Woodrow Wilson, and FDR incorporated fascist policies in the New Deal. Fascism was an international movement that appeared in different forms in different countries, depending on the vagaries of national culture and temperament. In Germany, fascism appeared as genocidal racist nationalism. In America, it took a “friendlier,” more liberal form. The modern heirs of this “friendly fascist” tradition include the New York Times, the Democratic Party, the Ivy League professoriate, and the liberals of Hollywood. The quintessential Liberal Fascist isn't an SS storm trooper; it is a female grade school teacher with an education degree from Brown or Swarthmore. These assertions may sound strange to modern ears, but that is because we have forgotten what fascism is. In this angry, funny, smart, contentious book, Jonah Goldberg turns our preconceptions inside out and shows us the true meaning of Liberal Fascism.
  ida b tarbell: Strange Birds Celia C. Pérez, 2019-09-03 From the award-winning author of The First Rule of Punk comes the story of four kids who form an alternative Scout troop that shakes up their sleepy Florida town. Writing with wry restraint that's reminiscent of Kate DiCamillo... a beautiful tale. --Kirkus Reviews (starred review!) When three very different girls find a mysterious invitation to a lavish mansion, the promise of adventure and mischief is too intriguing to pass up. Ofelia Castillo (a budding journalist), Aster Douglas (a bookish foodie), and Cat Garcia (a rule-abiding birdwatcher) meet the kid behind the invite, Lane DiSanti, and it isn't love at first sight. But they soon bond over a shared mission to get the Floras, their local Scouts, to ditch an outdated tradition. In their quest for justice, independence, and an unforgettable summer, the girls form their own troop and find something they didn't know they needed: sisterhood.
  ida b tarbell: Muckraking Ellen F. Fitzpatrick, 1994-04-15 Printed together for the first time since their original publication in 1903, Ray Stannard Baker’s piece on the coal strike, The Right to Work; Lincoln Steffens’ exposé of political corruption, The Shame of Minneapolis; and Ida Tarbell’s story of corporate villainy, The Oil War of 1872; along with an editorial from S. S. McClure and the narrative of Ellen Fitzpatrick, invite students to explore and understand muckraking.
  ida b tarbell: The Shame of the Cities Lincoln Steffens, 1957-01-01
  ida b tarbell: Following the Color Line Ray Stannard Baker, 1908
  ida b tarbell: The Tariff in Our Times Ida M. Tarbell, 2022-09-04 DigiCat Publishing presents to you this special edition of The Tariff in Our Times by Ida M. Tarbell. DigiCat Publishing considers every written word to be a legacy of humankind. Every DigiCat book has been carefully reproduced for republishing in a new modern format. The books are available in print, as well as ebooks. DigiCat hopes you will treat this work with the acknowledgment and passion it deserves as a classic of world literature.
  ida b tarbell: Anointed with Oil Darren Dochuk, 2019-06-04 A groundbreaking new history of the United States, showing how Christian faith and the pursuit of petroleum fueled America's rise to global power and shaped today's political clashes Anointed with Oil places religion and oil at the center of American history. As prize-winning historian Darren Dochuk reveals, from the earliest discovery of oil in America during the Civil War, citizens saw oil as the nation's special blessing and its peculiar burden, the source of its prophetic mission in the world. Over the century that followed and down to the present day, the oil industry's leaders and its ordinary workers together fundamentally transformed American religion, business, and politics -- boosting America's ascent as the preeminent global power, giving shape to modern evangelical Christianity, fueling the rise of the Republican Right, and setting the terms for today's political and environmental debates. Ranging from the Civil War to the present, from West Texas to Saudi Arabia to the Alberta Tar Sands, and from oil-patch boomtowns to the White House, this is a sweeping, magisterial book that transforms how we understand our nation's history.
  ida b tarbell: Delta Jewels Alysia Burton Steele, 2015-04-07 Inspired by memories of her beloved grandmother, photographer and author Alysia Burton Steele -- picture editor on a Pulitzer Prize-winning team -- combines heart-wrenching narrative with poignant photographs of more than 50 female church elders in the Mississippi Delta. These ordinary women lived extraordinary lives under the harshest conditions of the Jim Crow era and during the courageous changes of the Civil Rights Movement. With the help of local pastors, Steele recorded these living witnesses to history and folk ways, and shares the significance of being a Black woman -- child, daughter, sister, wife, mother, and grandmother in Mississippi -- a Jewel of the Delta. From the stand Mrs. Tennie Self took for her marriage to be acknowledged in the phone book, to the life-threatening sacrifice required to vote for the first time, these 50 inspiring portraits are the faces of love and triumph that will teach readers faith and courage in difficult times.
  ida b tarbell: A Life of Napoleon Bonaparte Ida Minerva Tarbell, 2018-10-15 This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
  ida b tarbell: McClure's Magazine , 1897
  ida b tarbell: The Bitter Cry of the Children John Spargo, 2023-11-11 John Spargo's 'The Bitter Cry of the Children' is a groundbreaking exposé on child labor in America during the early 20th century. With a compelling mix of investigative journalism and poignant storytelling, Spargo documents the appalling conditions faced by child workers in factories and mines, shedding light on a dark chapter of American history. The book echoes the sentiments of the progressive movement of the time, calling for social reform and labor laws to protect the most vulnerable members of society. Spargo's writing style is both evocative and informative, making this book a must-read for those interested in labor history and social justice issues. John Spargo, a prominent socialist and reformer, was deeply involved in the labor movement and social activism of his time. His personal experiences and passionate advocacy for social change undoubtedly influenced his decision to write 'The Bitter Cry of the Children'. As a respected authority on labor issues, Spargo's book served as a catalyst for legislative changes and public awareness about child labor practices. I highly recommend 'The Bitter Cry of the Children' to anyone interested in the history of labor rights, social reform, and the impact of investigative journalism. Spargo's powerful expose remains relevant today, reminding us of the ongoing need to protect the rights and well-being of all children.
  ida b tarbell: Titan Ron Chernow, 1998 There are worse men than John D Rockefeller,' Arena magazine observed at the turn of the century. 'There is probably not one, however, who in the public mind so typifies the grave and startling menace to social order.' The son of a flamboyant bigamist and pedlar of patent medicine, Rockefeller was by then America's richest man, the mastermind and creator of the country's first and most powerful monopoly: the Standard Oil Company. Reaching into every household across America, Standard Oil controlled 90% of all oil refined in the US, as well as its production, transportation, marketing and distribution. The story of Rockefeller is the story of a pivotal moment in modern history: the shift, after the American Civil War, from small-scale business to economy of scale, and the development of the first modern corporation. In Ron Chernow's magisterial work we see this transition in all of its nuances - accompanied by the rise in labour militancy, the tabloid press and large-scale philanthropy. TITAN is a business epic that, by illuminating the past, teaches us much about where we are today.
  ida b tarbell: The Ways of Woman Ida Minerva Tarbell, 1915
  ida b tarbell: The Red Record Ida B. Wells-Barnett, 2005 Tabulated Statistics and Alleged Causes of Lynching in the United States
  ida b tarbell: Revolutionary Networks Joseph M. Adelman, 2021-02-02 An engrossing and powerful story about the influence of printers, who used their commercial and political connections to directly shape Revolutionary political ideology and mass mobilization. Honorable Mention, St. Louis Mercantile Library Prize, Bibliographical Society of America During the American Revolution, printed material, including newspapers, pamphlets, almanacs, and broadsides, played a crucial role as a forum for public debate. In Revolutionary Networks, Joseph M. Adelman argues that printers—artisans who mingled with the elite but labored in a manual trade—used their commercial and political connections to directly shape Revolutionary political ideology and mass mobilization. Going into the printing offices of colonial America to explore how these documents were produced, Adelman shows how printers balanced their own political beliefs and interests alongside the commercial interests of their businesses, the customs of the printing trade, and the prevailing mood of their communities. Adelman describes how these laborers repackaged oral and manuscript compositions into printed works through which political news and opinion circulated. Drawing on a database of 756 printers active during the Revolutionary era, along with a rich collection of archival and printed sources, Adelman surveys printers' editorial strategies. Moving chronologically through the era of the American Revolution and to the war's aftermath, he details the development of the networks of printers and explains how they contributed to the process of creating first a revolution and then the new nation. By underscoring the important and intertwined roles of commercial and political interests in the development of Revolutionary rhetoric, this book essentially reframes our understanding of the American Revolution. Printers, Adelman argues, played a major role as mediators who determined what rhetoric to amplify and where to circulate it. Offering a unique perspective on the American Revolution and early American print culture, Revolutionary Networks reveals how these men and women managed political upheaval through a commercial lens.
  ida b tarbell: The Damnation of Theron Ware Harold Frederic, 1896 This Faustian tale of the spiritual disintegration of a young minister, written in the 1890s, deals subtly and powerfully with the impact of science on innocence and the collective despair that marked the transition into the modern age. In its realism, The Damnation of Theron Ware foreshadows Howells; in its conscious imagery it prefigures Norris, Crane, Henry James, and the symbolic realism of the twentieth century. Its author, Harold Frederic, internationally famous as London correspondent for the New York Times, wrote the novel two years before his death.
  ida b tarbell: The Other Half Tom Buk-Swienty, 2008 A portrait of the late-nineteenth-century social reformer draws on previously unexamined diaries and letters to trace his immigration to America, work as a police reporter for the New York Tribune, and pivotal contributions as a muckraker and progressive.
  ida b tarbell: Sensational Kim Todd, 2021-04-13 A gripping, flawlessly researched, and overdue portrait of America’s trailblazing female journalists. Kim Todd has restored these long-forgotten mavericks to their rightful place in American history.—Abbott Kahler, author (as Karen Abbott) of The Ghosts of Eden Park and Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy A vivid social history that brings to light the “girl stunt reporters” of the Gilded Age who went undercover to expose corruption and abuse in America, and redefined what it meant to be a woman and a journalist—pioneers whose influence continues to be felt today. In the waning years of the nineteenth century, women journalists across the United States risked reputation and their own safety to expose the hazardous conditions under which many Americans lived and worked. In various disguises, they stole into sewing factories to report on child labor, fainted in the streets to test public hospital treatment, posed as lobbyists to reveal corrupt politicians. Inventive writers whose in-depth narratives made headlines for weeks at a stretch, these “girl stunt reporters” changed laws, helped launch a labor movement, championed women’s rights, and redefined journalism for the modern age. The 1880s and 1890s witnessed a revolution in journalism as publisher titans like Hearst and Pulitzer used weapons of innovation and scandal to battle it out for market share. As they sought new ways to draw readers in, they found their answer in young women flooding into cities to seek their fortunes. When Nellie Bly went undercover into Blackwell’s Insane Asylum for Women and emerged with a scathing indictment of what she found there, the resulting sensation created opportunity for a whole new wave of writers. In a time of few jobs and few rights for women, here was a path to lives of excitement and meaning. After only a decade of headlines and fame, though, these trailblazers faced a vicious public backlash. Accused of practicing “yellow journalism,” their popularity waned until “stunt reporter” became a badge of shame. But their influence on the field of journalism would arc across a century, from the Progressive Era “muckraking” of the 1900s to the personal “New Journalism” of the 1960s and ’70s, to the “immersion journalism” and “creative nonfiction” of today. Bold and unconventional, these writers changed how people would tell stories forever.
  ida b tarbell: Don't Be Evil Rana Foroohar, 2019-11-05 A penetrating indictment of how today’s largest tech companies are hijacking our data, our livelihoods, our social fabric, and our minds—from an acclaimed Financial Times columnist and CNN analyst WINNER OF THE PORCHLIGHT BUSINESS BOOK AWARD • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND EVENING STANDARD “Don’t be evil” was enshrined as Google’s original corporate mantra back in its early days, when the company’s cheerful logo still conveyed the utopian vision for a future in which technology would inevitably make the world better, safer, and more prosperous. Unfortunately, it’s been quite a while since Google, or the majority of the Big Tech companies, lived up to this founding philosophy. Today, the utopia they sought to create is looking more dystopian than ever: from digital surveillance and the loss of privacy to the spreading of misinformation and hate speech to predatory algorithms targeting the weak and vulnerable to products that have been engineered to manipulate our desires. How did we get here? How did these once-scrappy and idealistic enterprises become rapacious monopolies with the power to corrupt our elections, co-opt all our data, and control the largest single chunk of corporate wealth—while evading all semblance of regulation and taxes? In Don’t Be Evil, Financial Times global business columnist Rana Foroohar tells the story of how Big Tech lost its soul—and ate our lunch. Through her skilled reporting and unparalleled access—won through nearly thirty years covering business and technology—she shows the true extent to which behemoths like Google, Facebook, Apple, and Amazon are monetizing both our data and our attention, without us seeing a penny of those exorbitant profits. Finally, Foroohar lays out a plan for how we can resist, by creating a framework that fosters innovation while also protecting us from the dark side of digital technology. Praise for Don’t Be Evil “At first sight, Don’t Be Evil looks like it’s doing for Google what muckraking journalist Ida Tarbell did for Standard Oil over a century ago. But this whip-smart, highly readable book’s scope turns out to be much broader. Worried about the monopolistic tendencies of big tech? The addictive apps on your iPhone? The role Facebook played in Donald Trump’s election? Foroohar will leave you even more worried, but a lot better informed.”—Niall Ferguson, Milbank Family Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford, and author of The Square and the Tower
  ida b tarbell: Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in All Its Phases Ida B. Wells-Barnett, 2018-04-05 Reproduction of the original: Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in All Its Phases by Ida B. Wells-Barnett
  ida b tarbell: The Age of Reform Richard Hofstadter, 2011-12-21 WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE • From the two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning author and preeminent historian comes a landmark in American political thought that examines the passion for progress and reform during 1890 to 1940. The Age of Reform searches out the moral and emotional motives of the reformers the myths and dreams in which they believed, and the realities with which they had to compromise.
  ida b tarbell: The Afro-American Press and Its Editors Irvine Garland Penn, 1891
  ida b tarbell: Wealth Against Commonwealth Henry Demarest Lloyd, 1894
  ida b tarbell: The Bully Pulpit Doris Kearns Goodwin, 2013-11-05 Pulitzer Prize–winning author and presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin’s dynamic history of Theodore Roosevelt, William H. Taft and the first decade of the Progressive era, that tumultuous time when the nation was coming unseamed and reform was in the air. Winner of the Carnegie Medal. Doris Kearns Goodwin’s The Bully Pulpit is a dynamic history of the first decade of the Progressive era, that tumultuous time when the nation was coming unseamed and reform was in the air. The story is told through the intense friendship of Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft—a close relationship that strengthens both men before it ruptures in 1912, when they engage in a brutal fight for the presidential nomination that divides their wives, their children, and their closest friends, while crippling the progressive wing of the Republican Party, causing Democrat Woodrow Wilson to be elected, and changing the country’s history. The Bully Pulpit is also the story of the muckraking press, which arouses the spirit of reform that helps Roosevelt push the government to shed its laissez-faire attitude toward robber barons, corrupt politicians, and corporate exploiters of our natural resources. The muckrakers are portrayed through the greatest group of journalists ever assembled at one magazine—Ida Tarbell, Ray Stannard Baker, Lincoln Steffens, and William Allen White—teamed under the mercurial genius of publisher S.S. McClure. Goodwin’s narrative is founded upon a wealth of primary materials. The correspondence of more than four hundred letters between Roosevelt and Taft begins in their early thirties and ends only months before Roosevelt’s death. Edith Roosevelt and Nellie Taft kept diaries. The muckrakers wrote hundreds of letters to one another, kept journals, and wrote their memoirs. The letters of Captain Archie Butt, who served as a personal aide to both Roosevelt and Taft, provide an intimate view of both men. The Bully Pulpit, like Goodwin’s brilliant chronicles of the Civil War and World War II, exquisitely demonstrates her distinctive ability to combine scholarly rigor with accessibility. It is a major work of history—an examination of leadership in a rare moment of activism and reform that brought the country closer to its founding ideals.