Klein, Gary A.
(1997)
The American press and the rise of Hitler, 1923-1933.
PhD thesis, London School of Economics and Political Science.
Abstract
This Ph.D. study will trace the development of National Socialism in Germany as it was depicted by three major American newspapers: the New York Times, the Chicago Daily Tribune and the Chicago Daily News. While news stories and editorials will be analyzed with respect to scope and bias, particular attention will also be paid to the decision-making processes within the newspaper establishments themselves. In attempting to understand the "news behind the news", an archival-driven methodology will be used in conjunction with the more conventional product-driven one. That is to say, memoranda and cables between publishers, editors and foreign correspondents will be examined in addition to the back issues of the newspapers themselves. By adopting this twin-pronged methodological approach, the scholar will be able to view the Hitlerian phenomenon through the eyes of the American public as well as penetrate the minds of newspapermen. My choice of publications is based strongly on the availability of primary source evidence. The Newberry Library possesses important internal documents of the Chicago Daily News. Specifically, a great deal can be learned about this newspaper's coverage of the rise of Hitler through an analysis of the relevant sections of the Charles H. Dennis Papers, Edward Price Bell Papers, Carroll Binder Papers, Edgar Mowrer Papers, Paul Mowrer Papers and Victor Lawson Papers, as well as other assorted materials. I will use the data generated from the Newberry Library in conjunction with information from the Sigrid Schultz Papers, courtesy of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin (Mass Communications History Center), as well as documents from the New York Times Archive. This will provide fresh insights into the news and editorial perceptions of the Chicago Daily News, Chicago Daily Tribune and New York Times as they relate to the events in Germany between 1923 and 1933. A key feature of this study will be a comprehensive analysis of how the relationship between a newspaper's management (which in the upcoming chapters will also be referred to as the "Home Office") and its Berlin bureau influenced the publication's news and editorial coverage of Germany. Furthermore, by examining the transatlantic correspondence between the Home Offices of the New York Times. Chicago Daily News and Chicago Daily Tribune and their field reporters, the reader will gain insight into issues which transcend the subject matter of this dissertation. These issues include: 1) Who exercised control over the formation and presentation of news -- management or the field reporter. 2) How did each paper's coverage of Hitler's rise to power reflect the journalistic principles of the day, especially those related to accuracy and objectivity. and 3) How did journalists define their role in the conduct of international affairs during the 1920's and early 1930's. Did they view themselves as detached recorders of events or as active participants in the political process, hoping to influence the course of events by shaping their coverage to conform to a particular ideological agenda?
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