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The Black Wall Street Basement Essay

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In 1819, a young Scot named James Gordon Bennett came to America determined to prosper in his new country.
By 1835, Bennett was still struggling. Although his family had been wealthy enough to send him to seminary in Scotland, he grappled with poverty in America. He resigned as editor of the recently merged New York Courier and Enquirer, unable to stomach his boss. The New York Sun’s Benjamin Day refused to hire him. Drowning in debt with only $500 to his name he decided to found his own newspaper. Renting out a Wall Street basement, James Gordon Bennett took his $500 and founded The New York Herald. According to media historian Anthony Fellows (2010), “within six months he was outselling the Sun” (p. 90).
In that small Wall Street basement, Bennett created the foundations of American journalism: reaction to the public’s desire, adaption to political mood, and acceptance of technological changes.
Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel (2014), authors of The Elements of Journalism, claim “Journalism’s first obligation is to the truth” (p. 49) and “Journalism’s first loyalty is to citizens” (p. 72).
This statement reflects Bennett’s initial vision for the Herald. The second page of the first issue, Bennett states: “Our only guide shall be good sound practical common sense, applicable to the businesses and bosoms of men engaged in everyday life….We shall endeavor to record facts, on every public and proper subject, stripped of verbiage and coloring, with comments suitable, just,

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