Notes
1. How Journalists Got the Idea
6 “Slight accident on way” Huxley, p. 221.
6 “To get out of a tedious social obligation” Evelin Sullivan, pp. 64-65.
8 “Lies of Vanity” Quoted in ibid, p. 83.
8 “The fear of losing something” Ibid., p. 57.
10 “Word of Gutenberg’s achievement” Koscielniak, unpaginated.
10 “Within a short time” Ibid.
2. Journalism from Afar
12 “a sad Spectacle” quoted in Bate, p. 125.
12 “These obsessional traits” Ibid., pp. 125-126.
12 “they usually tend” Ibid., p. 126.
12 “inherited from his Father” Ibid.
13 “one of the most fascinating” Ibid., p. 366.
13 “bear” and following definitions from SJD, pp. 90, 100, 144, 344, 419.
16 “To encourage our Seamen” PD, December 1740, p. 580.
16 “My Lords” Ibid., April 1741, unnumbered page before p. 172.
16 “Let us not add” Ibid., March 1742, unnumbered page before p. 116.
17 “The Parliamentary Debates remain” Bate, p. 203.
18 “the best he had ever read” Ibid, p. 203.
18 “That speech I wrote” Ibid., p. 203.
19 “would not be accessory” Ibid., p. 204.
19 “he did not think” Ibid., p. 204.
19 “persons of enlarged views” and “Writing for money” Brewer, p. 144.
3. A Woman Who Never Was
21 “to expand the very definition” Eric Burns, Infamous Scribblers, p. 86.
22 “A raging passion” BF, p. 23.
24 “as sassy a lass” Eric Burns, Infamous Scribblers, p. 88.
24 “ ‘This is the fifth time’ ” BF, pp. 127-129.
24 “ ‘What must poor young women do’ ” Ibid.
25 “teaching a lesson” Eric Burns, Infamous Scribblers, p. 89.
26 “this burning torture” Hawthorne, p. 273.
4. Lies against the British
28 “some British banks” Eric Burns, Infamous Scribblers, p. 138.
28 “beseeching Parliament” Ibid.
29 “Oliver was burned in effigy” Ibid., p. 144
30 “He was highly regarded” Ibid., p. 145.
30 One night some of them did just that Ibid., p. 146.
30 The hellish crew remained Ibid.
32 “What shewed a degree” BF, March 12, 1770.
33 “hirelings, pimps, parasites” Quoted in Eric Burns, Infamous Scribblers, p. 158.
34 “Franklin perpetrated one of the practical jokes” Dos Passos, p. 45.
34 “indefinite frontiers to the westward” Ibid., p. 47.
35 “In establishing American independence” Ramsay, p. 634.
5. Lies against Americans
37 “Political Christmas!” TA, March 7, 1797, p. 3.
39 “some compassionate human being” CC, July 7, 1800.
39 “beautifully molded form” Quoted in Brands, Andrew Jackson, p. 57.
40 “We are content” NHS, January 17, 1829.
44 “a flurry of speculation” Donald, p. 501.
45 “[took] possession by military force” Quoted in ibid., p. 502.
46 “We will never permit” Quoted in Harper, p. 67.
46 “We do not mean to rebel” Ibid., p. 68.
46 “The Despotism of Lincoln and Co.” Ibid., p. 159.
46 “Lincoln the beast” Ibid., p. 92.
46 “Newspapers are valuable organs” Ibid., p. 132.
47 “God Almighty” Quoted in Oates, p. 166.
48 “Rebels have slain” DT, April 16, 1865, p. 3.
48 “There was not the outward excitement” LRUU, April 20, 1865, p. 2.
48
“the biggest and most powerful newspaper” Thomas Fleming, “Fakery in American Journalism,” History News Network (George Mason University),
http://hnn.us/articles/1474.html.
6. The Boss
51 “who looked like something” Callow, p. 10.
51 “A craggy hulk of a man” Ibid., pp. 10-11.
52 “The cuspidors . . . were priced” Connable and Silberfarb, p. 159.
53 “A fictitious resolution” Allen, p. 163.
53 “I never saw so many people” Quoted in Ackerman, p. 64.
54 “also subsidized reporters” Callow, p. 178.
55 “could barely leave his home” Ackerman, p. 129.
55 “Is it a hopeless fight?” Ibid.
55 “a gross, half-comic character” McCullough, p. 126.
55 “I don’t care a straw” Quoted in Allen, p. 171.
56 “If a story was particularly damaging” King, p. 411.
57 “a check changed hands” Quoted in ibid., p. 411.
57 “My ambition” Ibid., p. 409.
7. The Epoch of the Hoax
60 “very well” Ibid.
60 “It was human nature” Ibid.
61 “Every limb and feature” WMT, October 4, 1862, p. 159.
61 “for a lie to work” Hoffer, The Historian’s Paradox, p. 89.
62 “five Indians [being] smothered” WMT, April 16-18, 1863, pp. 246-47.
62 “The whole country” Quoted in Brands, The Age of Gold, pp. 43-44.
64 “It seems that” “A Bloody Massacre Near Carson,” WMT, October 28, 1863, pp. 324-326.
65 “a storm of denunciation” Lauber, p. 13.
66 “stout, good-looking man” Fred Kaplan, p. 230.
67 “unreasonable demands” Quoted in ibid., p. 252.
67 “Although he is wealthy” Quoted in ibid., p. 253.
68
“averaged four feet in height” “Great Astronomical Discoveries Lately Made by Sir John Herschel, L.L.D., F.R.S., &c, At The Cape of Good Hope. [From Supplement to the Edinburgh Journal of Science], [Continued from yesterday’s Sun],” August 28, 1835,
www.museumofhoaxes.com/moonhoax4.html.
68 “an elegant quadruped” Ibid., August 27, 1835.
69 “Let no one who wishes” Trollope, pp. 15-16.
8. Furnishing a War
72 “He likes his books” Quoted in Swanberg, Citizen Hearst, p. 10.
74 “THE WORST INSULT” NYJ, February 9, 1898.
74 “Everything is quiet” Quoted in Swanberg, Citizen Hearst, p. 107.
74 “Please remain” Ibid., p. 108.
75 “the backbone of a chocolate éclair” Quoted in Brian, p. 233.
76 “Anyone advocating peace” Swanberg, Citizen Hearst, p. 140.
76 “undoubted proof of Spanish treachery” NYJ, February 17, 1898.
76 “Hearst’s coverage of the Maine” Swanberg, Citizen Hearst, p. 137.
77 “CRUISER MAINE BLOWN UP” NYJ, February 16, 1898.
77 “THE WARSHIP MAINE” Ibid., February 17, 1898.
77 “THE WHOLE COUNTRY THRILLS” Ibid., February 18, 1898.
77 “HOW THE MAINE ACTUALLY LOOKS” Ibid., February 20, 1898.
77 “HAVANA POPULACE INSULTS” Ibid., February 21, 1898.
77 “THE MAINE WAS DESTROYED” Ibid., February 23, 1898.
77 “SUICIDE LAMENTED THE MAINE” Ibid., April 18, 1898.
77 “Two contestants would portray” Swanberg, Citizen Hearst, p. 139.
78 “can stake its reputation” Quoted in ibid., p. 141.
78 “CONGRESS DECLARES WAR” NYJ, April 25, 1898.
78 “HOW DO YOU LIKE” Ibid., April 27, 1898.
78 “It is cheering” and “invention” Quoted in Swanberg, Citizen Hearst, p. 141.
79 “finds that Spanish government officials” Ibid., p. 141.
79 “the Maine was destroyed” Ibid., p. 142.
80 “His powers of observation” Quoted in Lubow, p. 3.
80 “a star reporter” Ibid., p. 2.
80 “His costume was an ulster” Ibid., p. 3.
80 “an aristocratic drawl” Ibid., p. 3.
81 “Certainly like to see Europe” Sinclair Lewis, p. 4.
81 “and Richard Harding Davis” Quoted in Lubow, p. 1.
81 “the reporter who brings” Ibid., p. 3.
82 “ran reports on the front page” Swanberg, Pulitzer, p. 251.
82 “undoubtedly semi-neurasthenic” Quoted in Juergens, p. 4.
83 “a coarse, bloated millionaire” Quoted in Brian, pp. 175-176.
83 “Pity Lucille!” Ibid., p. 176.
84 “a newspaper should be” Quoted in Juergens, p. 73.
84 “THE RIOTS IN HAVANA” Quoted in Brian, p. 226.
85 “nobody outside of a lunatic asylum” Quoted in Swanberg, Pulitzer, p. 247.
85 “MAINE EXPLOSION CAUSED” Quoted in Brian, p. 229.
85 “While lying off the Battery” Quoted in Swanberg, Pulitzer, p. 247.
85 “Spain is a decaying” NYW, April 10, 1898, p. 4.
86 “SLURS ON THE BRAVERY” Quoted in Brian, p. 236.
86 “Joy was unrestrained” Quoted in Swanberg, Pulitzer, p. 252.
86 “a contest of madmen” Quoted in Brian, p. 2.
87 “regain[ed] its former glowing reputation” Ibid., p. 3.
89 “spate of U.S. interventionism” Author interview with Dr. Jeffrey Bass, via e-mail, June 18, 2008.
89 “It is highly unlikely” Author interview with Dr. William Stueck Jr., via e-mail, June 18, 2008.
90 “Brixton D. Allaire, dear reader” Quoted in Swanberg, Citizen Hearst, p. 299.
90 “Paris, August 23” NYJ, August 23, 1917, p. 1.
91 “routinely invented sensational stories” Lee and Solomon, p. 93.
9. L’Affaire
94 “saddened and angry” Michael Burns, p. 68.
96 “reserved, highly controlled” Ibid., p. 98.
96 “an agent of international Jewry” Halasz, p. 44.
96 “entered the army” Michael Burns, p. 117.
96 Tending goats Ibid., p. 166.
97 “Until now” Quoted in David L. Lewis, p. 107.
97 “Blow his brains out” Quoted in Michael Burns, p. 167.
98 “My heart bleeds so” Quoted in David L. Lewis, p. 112.
98 “When occasionally he did sleep” Ibid., pp. 109-110.
99 “When storms stirred up the sea” Halasz, p. 63.
100 “hot word” Ibid., p. 63
100 “savage energy” Quoted in Michael Burns, p. 91.
100 “hooknose tribe” Ibid., p. 92.
101 “special correspondent” Quoted in Halasz, p. 64.
101 “‘Stirring up emotions’” Michael Burns, p. 180.
102 “an iron band” Halasz, p. 63.
102 “The torture was hardly bearable” Ibid., p. 64.
103 “received orders to report” Ibid., p. 64.
10 Speeding Up a War
108 “There is something about a national convention” Quoted in Hobson, p. 254.
108 “The college professor” GM, p. 95.
108 “a string of wet sponges” Quoted in Hobson, p. 217.
109 “It is the close” Quoted in Rodgers, p. 246.
109 “the nearest thing to Voltaire” Quoted in Hobson, p. 251.
111 “The vast majority” Ibid., p. 248.
111 “buoyed up, exhilarated” Quoted in ibid., p. 249.
112 “I believe that [ Jews]” Ibid., p. 454.
113 “The revival of literary controversy” GM, p. 6. From “The Embattled Literati,” AMM, June 1930, p. 154.
114 “My own talent for faking” Mencken, p. 219.
114 “synthetic war dispatch” Ibid., pp. 219-222.
115 “Years later” Ibid., p. 222.
116 “pestered me with unanswerable questions” Quoted in Rodgers, p. 67.
117 “The Colonel glared at me” Ibid., p. 67.
118 “my masterpiece of all time” Mencken, p. 219.
118 “On December 20” Quoted in Hobson, p. 186.
118 “What ails the truth” Quoted in Gilovich, p. 88.
Part Two: Hiding the Truth
122 “We shall endeavor” Quoted in Stephens, p. 226.
11. Their Man in Moscow
123 “fancied himself a Citizen” Taylor, p. 9.
124 “only acknowledgment of his family” Ibid., p. 27.
124 “ten years old” Duranty, p. 1.
124 “One may think” Ibid., p. 131.
126 “Stalin is giving the Russian people” NYT, June 14, 1931, p. 14.
126 “RED ARMY IS HELD” Ibid., June 25, 1931, p. 7.
127 “Every nationality” Ibid., June 26, 1931, p. 8.
128 “You have done a good job” Quoted in Taylor, p. 192.
129 “made sweeps through private homes” Quoted in Woods, p. 164.
129 “the famine was an organized one” Quoted in Taylor, p. 205.
129 “the only creatures” Ibid., p. 194.
129 “horrible sight” Ibid., p. 195.
130 “embryos out of alcohol bottles” Quoted in Taylor, p. 202.
131 “delicate, ascetic features” Quoted in Wolfe, p. 280.
132 “I didn’t quite like it” Ibid., p. 200.
132 “I mean starving” Quoted in Wolfe, p. 205.
133 “Russia today is in the grip” Quoted in Dana G. Dalrymple, Soviet Studies 15, no. 3 (January 1964): 254.
133 “The struggle for bread” Ibid., p. 253.
133 “The children had fallen asleep” Muggeridge, Winter in Moscow, pp. 43-44.
134 “Unlike the children” Ibid., p. 44.
134 “The famine is mostly bunk” Quoted in Taylor, p. 210.
134 “any report of a famine” Quoted in Woods, p. 165.
134 “apple-cheeked dairymaids” Muggeridge, The Green Stick, p. 258.
134 “food shortages” Quoted in Taylor, p. 215.
135 “The blunt truth,” NYT, September 16, 1933, p. 14.
135 “the harvest is so good” Ibid.
135 “BIG SOVIET CROP” Ibid.
136 “a triumph, one might say” Ibid., p. 14.
136 “covered up the horrors” Quoted in Taylor, p. 244.
137 “the greatest liar” Quoted in Woods, p. 165.
137 “admired Stalin and his regime” Muggeridge, The Green Stick, p. 255.
137 “I had the feeling” Ibid., p. 256.
138 “Whatever Stalin’s apologists may say” Quoted in Woods, p. 239.
12. Sins of Omission
142 “No word of this activity” Barry, p. 225.
143 “the papers helped” Ibid.
144 “had worked in several presidential campaigns” Ibid., p. 167.
144 “the most insatiable patronage grabber” Ibid., p. 225.
145 With the weather bureau NOMT, April 9, 1927, p. 1.
148 “Neither of the planes” NYT, March 28, 1977, p. 1.
149 “Flying after the start” Brafman and Brafman, p. 12.
151 “Five Hundred Eighty-three Die” Quoted in James Randi, “The Media and Reports on the Paranormal,” Humanist 37 (July-August 1977): 45.
151 “I have in my possession” Ibid., p. 45.
152 “I don’t claim” Ibid., p. 45.
153 “Fried says” Ibid., p. 45.
155 “killing free enterprise” William S. White, p. 117.
156 “rough-hewn, benignly ursine” Black, p. 586.
156 “a crippled imbecile” Quoted in Farr, p. 286.
157 “A reshuffling of the personnel” WSJ, November 7, 1940.
13. The Same Team
162 “hoping the chop” Berg, p. 203.
162 “furious, [they] simply backed their car off ” Amory, p. 243.
163 “thin-voiced, thin-bodied” Quoted in Cannadine, p. 57.
163 His most thorough biographer Ibid., p. 114.
163 “rarely looked them in the eye” Ibid.
165 “In her presence” Ibid., p. 143.
165 “I never can understand” Ibid., p. 187.
167 “Why waste a reporter’s time” George Seldes, p. 18.
167 “But the moment” Ibid., p. 19.
167 “I gave him my notes” Ibid.
168 “done everything with the Pennsylvania legislature” Quoted in Weinberg, p. 198.
168 “Surely it was not mere coincidence” George Seldes, p. 18.
168 “a sort of family gathering” Quoted in Lubow, p. 145.
169 “Mrs. McKinley has epileptic fits,” Ibid.
169 “not saying anything” Ibid.
169 “For much of this century” Kurtz, p. 239.
171 “Mind, this is private” Quoted in Thayer, p. 300,
171 “He was the earliest American” Mark Sullivan, vol. 3, p. 74.
172 “I made a bet today” Quoted in Greenberg, p. 10.
172 “could be silent in five languages” Ibid., p. 9.
172 “much like a wooden Indian” Ibid., p. 8.
172 “How could they tell?” Ibid., p. 9.
173 “The words of the President” Ibid., p. 63.
173 “at the constant correctness” Ibid.
174 “Churchill had intended” Goodwin, p. 408.
175 recalled traveling with a small White House press corps Smith, p. 28.
177 “youthful energetic” Caro, p. 505.
177 “one of the keenest” Ibid., p. 572.
178 “I remember as a kid reporter” Quoted in Sabato, p. 32.
178 “When I first came to Washington” Ibid.
178 “In 1962 Senator Pete Williams” Ibid., p. 32.
179 “Newspapers are read” Quoted in Lipstadt, p. 133.
179 “Three newsmen invited to dine” Quoted in Boardman, p. 4.
180 “like all Negroes” Ibid., p. 4.
180 “If it can be avoided” Quoted in Mark Sullivan, vol. 6, p. 94.
181 “was not pretty” Quoted in Neal, p. 38.
182 “reporters sometimes called” Kurtz, p. 144.
182 “Everybody knows about us” Quoted in Neal, pp. 43-44.
182 “I never even heard the rumors” Author interview with Sander Vanocur, via telephone, April 19, 2008.
183 “kiddo” and “sweetie” Quoted in Collier and Horowitz, p. 175.
183 “Let’s sack with Jack” Quoted in Sabato, p. 37.
183 “Bobby Baker, Senator Lyndon Johnson’s aide” Collier and Horowitz, p. 175.
184 “News of the President’s indiscretions” Kaiser, p. 127.
185 “Where did these men” Ibid., p. 415.
186 “The reason we didn’t follow up” Quoted in Sabato, p. 39.
186 “Even if I did know about Kennedy” Author interview with Sander Vanocur via telephone, April 19, 2008.
14. Rejecting the Faith
192 “it seemed, forgot to blossom” Theodore White, pp. 67-88.
192 “manipulate American public opinion” Ibid., p. 76.
192 “dwarf bandits” Ibid., p. 77.
193 “the guerrilla chieftain” Ibid, p. 78.
194 “Pistol-Packing Miss Golden Flowers” Ibid.
195 “Three years later” Ibid., p. 79.
196 “Chiang Conquers All” TM, January 3, 1938, p. 15.
196 “a pathetic man” and “did not know” Theodore White, p. 160.
196 Chiang fumbled and bumbled at his tasks Ibid., pp. 160-161.
197 “In Chungking you are” Quoted in Halberstam, p. 78.
198 “I’m not sure” Quoted in Swanberg, Luce and His Empire, p. 243.
15. Janet’s World
203 “sashayed” and “wearing a red wool suit” Sager, p. 103.
205 “We were supposed to” Ibid.
206 “It didn’t take long” Ibid.
206 “They’re just jealous” Ibid.
206 “ Say two words ” Quoted in Sager, p. 120.
207 “spent her life on the run” Ibid., p. 106.
208 “I want my life back” Quoted in ibid, p. 105.
208 “What I did was horrible” Quoted in ibid., p. 108.
16. What a Picture Is Worth
210 “The only value ever claimed” AHM, “The True Story of Bernarr McFadden,” December 1981, p. 28.
210 “the Kip Rhinelander trial” Gabler, p. 73.
210 “one of the low points” AHM, “The True Story of Bernarr MacFadden,” p. 28.
211 “Honk, Honk. It’s the Bonk” Quoted in Gabler, p. 76.
213 “End Poverty” Quoted in Manchester, p. 101.
213 “Empty Promises” Ibid.
213 “MGM employees were invited” Hamilton, p. 87.
213 “leaflets, radio broadcasts” Ibid., p. 87.
214 “sturdy, decent workmen” Gilbert Seldes, p. 93.
214 “elderly bit actress” Manchester, p. 101.
215 “And all the laws of Washington” Quoted in Bass and Thompson, p. 106.
217 “This is the worst black eye” Ibid.
219 “critics contend that at least 300 people” NYT, February 15, 1993, p. D5.
17. The Most Hated Man in American Newsrooms
223 “Anne,” he said, “ they have stolen our baby” Quoted in Berg, p. 240.
225 “The worst offender” Ludovic Kennedy, pp. 208-9.
226 “I said that in October” Quoted in Gabler, p. 212.
226 “How do they let a fucking child” Ibid.
18. What Haste Makes
230 “Down in Virginia” Quoted in Clark, p. 21.
232 “Urgent” Quoted in David Kennedy, p. 231.
233 “Armistice Allies Germany” Ibid.
233 “all the joyful enthusiasm” NYT, November 8, 1918, p. 1.
233 “carnival of noise and ribaldry” Quoted in David Kennedy, p. 231.
234 “was deliciously caught up” Daniels, p. 1.
234 “understood that America now” Ibid., p. 2.
234 “The Thief of Joy” Quoted in Mark Sullivan, vol. 5, p. 516.
Epilogue: A Few Final Mistakes
238 “private rages and despairs” Dreiser, p. 248.
239 “I went home” Ibid., p. 250.
240 “The next morning I arose” Ibid., p. 251.
240 “a large and enthusiastic audience” Ibid.
240 “Great God!” Ibid.
240 “To see three shows at once” Ibid., p. 252.
244 “WHITE-BLACK DISPARITY” NYT, July 24, 1992, p. 1.
244 “INCOME EQUALITY GAP WIDENS” USA, July 24, 1992, p. 3.
A Note to Readers
246 “As the FBI searched” Dave Kindred, “Park Bombing: The Scene on Buford Highway,” AJC, August 1, 1996, p. 14A.
249 “Janet Cooke caused the biggest scandal” Sager, p. 103.