PRINT JOURNALISM AND THE ISSUE OF MUCKRAKING

Introduction:
The print journalism we know today has its roots in the 17th century. Corantos, one-page news sheets about specific events, were printed in English in Holland in 1620 and imported to England by British booksellers who were eager to satisfy public demand for information about continental happenings that eventually led to what we now call the Thirty Years Wars (Baran, 2009: 100).

The continental happenings included happenings in public offices, critique government policies and other reports that x-rayed events that concerned public interests.

As early as the 17th century, Enlightenment theorists had argued that publicity and openness provide the best protection against tyranny, corruption and the excesses of arbitrary rule; Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States (1861-1865) articulated the role of the press when he said, Let the people know the facts, and the country will be safe. In the early 1700s, the French political philosopher Montesquieu raging against the secret accusation delivered by palace courtiers to the French King, prescribed publicity as the cure for the abuse of power; Scholars ranging from Marshall McLuhan, Jurgen Habermas (German philosopher and social theorist) to John Thompson have demonstrated beyond doubt how the mass media impact both on the individual and the society, shaping perception, knowledge and attitude, influencing social relations and setting agenda for the public. All these can only be achieved when journalists are up to the task of their duties- investigative journalism and watchdog role.
Going more directly to the topic at hand, this paper shall x-ray print journalism and its efforts as the mirror of the society trough which the governed see clearly the activities of the government, and how muckraking in relation to journalism came about.

The focus of this paper will be:
The meaning of print journalism
The term muckraking; and its origin.

Muckrakers as social critics (focusing on the activities of the muckrakers and ample of case studies)

Print Journalism
Print journalism is the collection, preparation, and distribution of news and related commentary and feature materials through such as pamphlets, newsletters, newspapers and magazines. In a similar vein, Janice Castro, former editor, Time.com says journalism is the gathering, evaluating and distribution facts of current interest.

The invention of the movable type printing press attributed to Johannes Gutenberg in 1456, led to the wide dissemination of the bible and other printed books. The first newspaper appeared in Europe in the 17th century. The first printed periodical was Mercurius Gallobelgicus; written in Latin, it appeared in 1594 in Cologne, now Germany, and was distributed widely, even finding its way to readers in England.

The first regularly published newspaper (as opposed to the earlier "news books", published in 8- to 24-page quarto formats) in English was the Oxford Gazette (later the London Gazette, and published continually ever since), which first appeared in 1665. It began publication while the British royal court was in Oxford to avoid the plague in London, and was published twice a week. When the court moved back to London, the publication moved with it. An earlier newsbook, the Continuation of Our Weekly News, had been published regularly in London since 1623.

The first daily newspaper, the Daily Courant, appeared in 1702 and continued publication for more than 30 years. By this time, the British had adopted the Press Restriction Act, which required that the printer's name and place of publication be included on each printed document.

The creation of new industrial occupations in society as a whole was reported by a new set of newspapermen who had far more specific jobs than their 18th century predecessors. Earlier journalists might write, edit, and print each copy of the paper by themselves. Even in the 19th century, James Gordon Bennett had...

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