Spanish American War: Yellow Journalism Notes
1. Yellow journalism is the exaggerated news reports of events.
2. The first amendment to the US Constitution guarantees freedom of the press.
3. Yellow Journalism was first applied to the newspapers of William Randolph Hearst in the late 1800s.
The term referred to a color comic called the “Yellow Kid”. The ink from the comic would often smear
onto other parts of the page.
4. Hearst was very interested in the Spanish American War. His paper ran stories about how cruel the
Spanish were to the Cubans. Many of the stories were true but some of the pictures were changed and
stories were exaggerated.
United States
Cuba
Mexico
Reasons for the Spanish American War:
1. Protection of American business interests in Cuba.
2. American support of Cuban rebels to gain independence from Spain
3. Rising tensions as a result of the sinking of the USS Maine in Havana Harbor
4. Exaggerated news reports of events (yellow journalism)