The Yellow Kids: Foreign Correspondents in the Heyday of Yellow Journalism

by Joyce Milton

Evaluates contemporary journalists' coverage of the Yukon Gold Rush and the Spanish-American war

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Journalism

432 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Joyce Milton is the author of several noted juvenile biographies, as well as the prize-winning novel, Save the Loonies.

Reviews

[Don Gerstein · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The Yellow Kids” is a history book, but unlike most history books you have ever read. Readers are treated to the backgrounds of some of the largest newspaper publishers, most notably Joseph Pulitzer, William Randolph Hearst, and Arthur Brisbane, as well as the travels of some of their most active reporters. While not the type of book I expected, I became interested in the trail of anecdotes that author Joyce Milton generously scatters over every page. Many of the adventures are of the you-can’t-make-this-stuff-up variety, and it is amazing to watch as Milton weaves the stories of multiple people in a coherent manner.

As an example, coded messages were often sent during the war between Cuba and Spain. When John Caldwell received a gun but no bullets, he cabled “Camera received, but no plates.” Conjecture is this might have been decoded incorrectly to mean the American Consulate was under attack. While there is no proof this affected the president’s decision to send a battleship (the Maine), it makes for an interesting story considering that the Maine was destroyed in harbor about three weeks later.

Much of the book covers the years during the Cuban War for Independence and the Spanish-American War, with the brunt of the story told from the viewpoint of the foreign correspondents. While the book can bog down here and there, one cannot help but get lost in the stories and obtain an intimate view of the people who were part of the era of yellow journalism. Four stars.

[Lissibith · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this would be a fascinating read, since I'm involved in journalism and the period of the major yellow journalists has always held a bit of a fascination for me. But I had a lot of trouble getting into this book, and it sometimes felt like a bit of a chore to read.

That said, the information it provides is broad and the in-depth look at the lives of journalists like Scovel and Crane, in an era when journalism looked very different, were fascinating in short bursts and I found the account of San Juan Hill very interesting and well-framed. Overall, worth a look if this particular aspect of American communication history is something that interests you.

[John Rollins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read. Interesting.