The interaction between Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal and the press was a high-stakes “war for the narrative.” While the Depression bankrupted many traditional city press clubs, the New Deal effectively created a new, state-sponsored media landscape and redefined the relationship between the President and the working journalist.
1. The Federal Writers’ Project (FWP)
When the commercial newspaper industry collapsed, the New Deal stepped in as an employer through the Works Progress Administration (WPA).
- Hiring the Unemployed: The FWP hired over 6,000 out-of-work journalists, editors, and writers. This was the first time the American government directly subsidized the “literary labor” of its citizens.
- The American Guide Series: Instead of traditional news, these writers created massive, detailed guidebooks for every state in the union. It was “slow journalism”—an attempt to document the soul of America during its darkest hour.
- Legacy: The project preserved the careers of future giants like Zora Neale Hurston, John Cheever, and Richard Wright, who might have otherwise abandoned writing during the crash.
2. Bypassing the “Press Barons”
FDR had a famously “frenemy” relationship with the media. He loved individual reporters but loathed their bosses.
- The “Friendly” Reporters: Roosevelt cultivated an intimate relationship with the Washington press corps. He held bi-weekly, informal press conferences in the Oval Office, often treating reporters to jokes and “off-the-record” tips to win their loyalty.
- Attacking the Publishers: While he charmed the writers, he publicly attacked newspaper owners (the “Press Barons”) like William Randolph Hearst, accusing them of publishing “poisonous propaganda” against the New Deal.
- Disintermediation: Roosevelt used the radio (Fireside Chats) to speak around the newspapers. If a paper gave him a bad headline on Friday, he would go on the air Sunday night to tell his version of the story directly to families in their living rooms.
3. The New Deal “Alphabet” Newspapers
The New Deal was so expansive that it spawned its own dedicated press ecosystem.
- The New Dealer: In cities like Seattle, specific newspapers were founded with the primary goal of promoting New Deal policies and supporting the Democratic “alphabet agencies” (like the WPA or CCC).
- Government Newsreels: The administration produced high-quality films and newsreels (like The Plow That Broke the Plains) that were shown in theaters, acting as a visual newspaper for the New Deal’s successes in the Dust Bowl and Tennessee Valley.
The Shift in Journalism (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 | Active Collaboration or Open Hostility |
| Funding Source | Purely Advertising | Advertising + Federal Subsidies (FWP) |
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?