One of the most important newspapers throughout the 19th and 20th centuries was the Chicago Tribune, a paper that rose above the many others due to its important political contributions and bold, explosive reporting. The paper was founded in 1847 by James Kelly, John E. Wheeler and Joseph K. C. Forrest. The early years of the paper were some of its most tumultuous, as a lack of success led to near bankruptcy in a mere eight years. This led to a huge change that would propel the paper forward: the acquisition of the paper by Joseph Medill, who put the paper in the green and pushed abolitionist views and support for president Abraham Lincoln. Much of the success of the paper came from their coverage of the Civil War and their pursuit of reformation after the war.
The paper went in a different direction in 1911 after Medill’s grandson Robert McCormick took over the paper and transformed it into being a more conservative voice. McCormick used the paper to oppose the presidencies of both Franklin D. Roosevelt and Dwight D. Eisenhower. This new direction proved to be overwhelmingly successful, as the daily circulation swelled from 230,000 in 1912 to 650,000 in 1925, making the Tribune the most successful and most read paper in the city. McCormick died at the age of 74 in 1955, as he had been in failing health for two years due to severe pneumonia. The paper became much more moderate after his death and even moved away from politics, focusing instead on local topics, such as Chicago city life, social life, commerce and agriculture.
The Tribune had some huge contributions to the journalism world. They had a heavy focus on investigative reporting and would investigate members of both the Republican and Democrat parties. Their reporting had a tangible effect, as in one case, the investigation of Republican senator William Lorimer ultimately forced him out of congress due to evidence of him paying off voters being exposed. The Tribune also played a major role in the Watergate scandal, as they were the first and only paper to attain and publish the 246,000 word text of the Watergate tapes for the world to read, a massive moment in the history of journalism.
The Tribune also was responsible for the Treaty of Versailles being brought to the US. Henry Wales, a reporter for the Tribune working in Paris, had being doing journalism in the area and had developed plenty of connections. One day, a man handed a thick package to Wales in the Paris office and walked out. That package contained the Treaty, which was given to Frazier Hunt, a war correspondent who smuggled the treaty back to the US in secret. The man who delivered the package to Wales turned out to be a Chinese delegate in possession of the treaty who had appreciated Wales’ journalism.
The Tribune has gone through many shifts in both political leanings and views, practices and published content, yet has proven itself to be an important and popular voice during nearly every time period. Their contributions to both journalism and politics will be felt for many years and discussed far in the future, with their investigative reporting being a particularly inspiring aspect that modern news institutions should take after.
Sources:
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Chicago-Tribune
https://www.chicagotribune.com/chi-companyhistory-htmlpage-htmlstory.html
http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/275.html
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