The Pen is Mightier (Still)

In my student teaching, I am currently covering a unit on American Imperialism. If you recall your history class, you will remember how “Yellow Journalism” pushed the public opinion towards war (specifically the Spanish-American War). Now, before you sigh and ignore what you expect to be some rant about our imperialistic adventures in Iraq, stick with me – at least THIS post isn’t about that. I merely wish to point out that the media maintains a powerful influence in world affairs.

For proof, one need only look to the Muslim world, as consuls and embassies burn over a political cartoon that originally ran in a Danish newspaper. A single cartoon is now at the forefront of the news and is dramatically shaping world affairs, just as the Yellow Journalist of the 1890’s were able to change their world and push it towards war. Though we can only hope that this incident does not end in violence, it is evidence that the pen of the journalist still yields a lot of power.