4. The National Press Club’s “Golden Ticket”
While local city clubs were dying, the National Press Club in D.C. became the ultimate power hub. Because the New Deal made Washington the center of the economic universe, every journalist in the world wanted a seat there. The club transitioned from a place to hide from the world into the world’s most important stage for policy announcements.
Would you like me to find more information on the Federal Writers’ Project and the specific famous authors it saved, or perhaps more on the radio vs. newspaper rivalry of that time?
| Author | FWP Role | Famous Post-Depression Work |
|---|---|---|
| Richard Wright | Wrote “The Negro in Chicago” for the FWP. | Native Son & Black Boy |
| Zora Neale Hurston | Florida project; collected African American folklore. | Their Eyes Were Watching God |
| Ralph Ellison | Collected urban folklore in New York City. | Invisible Man |
| John Cheever | Edited the Washington: City and Capital guide. | The Wapshot Chronicle |
| Saul Bellow | Wrote profiles of famous authors for the project. | The Adventures of Augie March |
2. The Press-Radio War (1933–1935)
As newspapers struggled, a bitter rivalry erupted with the rising medium of Radio.
- The Threat: Radio was free and instant. Newspapers feared they would lose their “news monopoly” and their advertising revenue.
- The Biltmore Agreement (1933): Newspaper publishers forced radio networks into a restrictive deal. Under this “peace treaty,” radio stations agreed to:
- Broadcast news only twice a day (to ensure papers sold first).
- Limit news segments to five minutes or less.
- Use only news provided by the newspapers’ wire services.
- End every broadcast with: “See your daily newspaper for further details.”
- The Outcome: The truce failed by 1935. The public’s hunger for immediate updates on the Depression and the rising threat of war in Europe made the restrictions impossible to maintain. Radio became the primary source for “breaking” news, while newspapers shifted toward in-depth analysis.
3. FDR: Bypassing the “Press Barons”
President Roosevelt had a famously complex relationship with the media.
- The Friendly Reporters: FDR held twice-weekly, informal press conferences in the Oval Office. He called reporters by their first names and offered “off-the-record” tips to win their loyalty, essentially turning the D.C. press corps into his allies.
- The Enemy Publishers: While he loved the writers, he hated their bosses. He often attacked newspaper owners like William Randolph Hearst, accusing them of publishing “poisonous propaganda” against his policies.
- Fireside Chats: To circumvent hostile newspaper headlines, FDR used radio to speak directly to the public. If a newspaper attacked the New Deal on Friday, he would go on the air Sunday night to tell his side of the story, effectively making the newspaper’s critique “old news” by Monday morning.
Comparison of Media Power (1930s)
| Feature | Pre-Depression Press | New Deal Era Press |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Medium | Print Newspapers | Print + Radio + Newsreels |
| Journalist Status | “Bohemian” / Social Clubs | Professional / Unionized (The Guild) |
| Gov. Relationship | Distant / Investigative | Strategic Partnership or Open War |
| Funding Source | Purely Advertising | Advertising + Federal Subsidies (FWP) |