Tuesday, March 10, 2015
Celluloid Newspapers
We have seen two films, His Girl Friday and Citizen Kane, in which the protagonists work in the newspapers business (Walter Burns is an editor, Hildy Johnson a reporter, Charles Foster Kane a publisher). What do these films tell us about the job of a reporter or publisher in the 1940's? What is the role or status of the newspaper at that time? How have things changed since that time?
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The representation of the newspaper business as an important part of life in both Citizen Kane and His Girl Friday is indicative of an aspect of life in the 1940s that is no longer present in 2015; during the time of the production of these movies, it appears that journalism was not only significant in that it was a lucrative business for executives like Walter Burns (His Girl Friday) and Charles Foster Kane (Citizen Kane), but at the same time it was also very important in entertaining and educating the public. In contrast to the electronic/social based media that many people are educated by today (for better or worse), newspapers were the most convenient way for the average person to be entertained in the 1940s. Home televisions did not become commonplace until the 1950s, so besides going to the cinema (which was popular but not a daily activity) the main form of entertainment would be reading the news. Additionally, as the 1940s was a decade full of war, constant action, and national paranoia, it was of the utmost importance to an average American to be up-to-date on the latest international and domestic current events. Unfortunately, this is often no longer the case; much of the education that the public receives on the news is not only arbitrary (subjects that are utterly irrelevant), but also comes in the form of an online article shared on Facebook that the reader may casually scroll through without taking in any information.
ReplyDeleteOne other aspect of journalism that is exemplified through these two movies actually has nothing to do with journalism itself, but more to do with the journalists that put the whole process together. Charles Foster Kane and Walter Burns clearly have different motives in their respective movies; Kane wants to make money, and Walter wants to gain Hildy’s love and write a particular article. However, both men are similarly very self-absorbed and are clearly only concerned with their own personal gain. While Kane seems to be writing news to benefit the people, it becomes more and more apparent throughout the duration of Citizen Kane that he is only pretending to care about the public and only wants to increase his own influence, power, and fortune. Walter Burns surprisingly has the same modus operandi; although he seems like he is trying to benefit Hildy and the newspaper as a whole by trying to write the article about the escape of Earl Williams, he is actually only trying to keep Hildy around and (just like Kane) benefit himself.
In conclusion, His Girl Friday and Citizen Kane not only the significance of newspapers in the 1940s, but also how the editors/leaders of the newspapers can seem to care about the public but truly only care about themselves. This is not only true in the newspaper business, but in large businesses of all kinds; just like newspapers affected society in the 1940s, our world is shaped by the things that we buy and read as they alter our perception of the world and subsequently cause us to act in a certain way. However, behind the mask of good intentions that the leaders of our society often display, a darker truth is often present. I am neither a cynic or a conspiracy theorist, but I do truly believe that His Girl Friday and Citizen Kane intended to tell the public of the importance of newspapers in the 1940s, and also that the leaders of the media are often corrupt.
Both His Girl Friday and Citizen Cane clearly depict the newspaper industry to be a well-known joke of society; while today, it is not necessarily as large a topic of critique, I still think that the same characteristics of the industry exist. In both of the recent films we watched, the press is displayed to us as this backwards, immoral, unintelligent establishment. Because of the way the work force is laid out for us in these films, it is hard to take this industry seriously. Few people in these industries seem to care about anybody but themselves and can usually be found wasting away with the “high” they get from this line of work. For example, in His Girl Friday when Earl Williams is caught in the press room, we witness multiple reporters desperately spewing out various versions of the breaking story. They telephoned their colleagues saying that he resisted arrest, he fought back, he threatened officers, etc. I guess it makes sense that a more interesting story brings more readers and more money. So, they lied. Similarly in Citizen Cane, the employees of the Enquirer seemed to have this careless, selfish mindset. When Mr. Kane first hired his “all-star” staff and through the office party, both him and Bernstein expressed words and actions of general carelessness and selfishness. Specifically, Bernstein assured Leland that the new staff would simply just do their work and be loyal. “They got work to do, they do it,” Bernstein famously said. And while this conversation was going on, Kane could be seen dancing and hitting on the dancers, not writing newspapers. In general, I find these films to be obvious critiques on the newspaper industry. It is very clear that these films suggest the illegitimacy of it. Today, we know the media to be one of the lesser amongst trusted sources. While we don’t necessarily see much of the critiquing in pop-culture, I would say that their carried tradition and legacy of untrustworthy reporting is most definitely a generally known fact.
ReplyDeleteAfter watching both of their moves, it’s is clear to the viewer that Orson Welles and Howard Hawkes both believe that publishers and reporters alike are in the business for the business, not for the people. Despite what they would have us believe, characters like Charles Kane and Walter Burns publish newspapers for the notoriety and financial gains, not because they have some higher calling. While Kane starts his career with the intent to bring down the corrupt business men who thrive on Wall Street, once he is exposed to the power that comes with heading a major periodical, he quickly discards his principals in the pursuit of personal success. At one deciding point in the film he even acknowledges the fact that a certain story isn’t very important but the paper should run it and exaggerate it as it will be good for business. While Kane at least began his career with good intentions, Walter Burns entered the newspaper business only for personal success. Throughout the movie he is more concerned with selling papers than ensuring that his readers read the truth. Even when the life of a man (Earl Williams) is on the line, he is less concerned with justice than with getting the story in his paper. Despite being morally unscrupulous, both of these men ran incredibly successful papers as they were living during a time when the newspaper industry was booming. Today the role of the newspaper has changed drastically. It is no longer the primary source of news for the masses. But while the role of newspaper has changed, the role of the newspaperman (or woman) hasn’t. Men like Kane and Burns will always find ways to be at the heads of major papers, and as a result, the papers will only search for the truth if the truth is profitable.
ReplyDeleteI believe that from viewing these two movies Citizen Kane and His Girl Friday, it is an immense stress to be in the newspaper business. If you look at the two movies the newspaper business was a fast pace area with emotions soaring. At one point Hildy breaks down and has to re think everything she has done from the stress of the job. Kane just about loses everything he loved because he could not take even a minute away from his inquirer newspaper. The Newspaper did however play a very important roll in the 1940’s. It was the main source of news and current events, it was a good way to pass time for many and was an enjoyable read. To many the newspaper brought them entertainment when the twice a day. Although many of the big businesses were corrupt with fake stories meant to keep the business alive. The newspaper was undoubtedly a crucial role in the 1940’s media. The newspaper has now become a thing of the past, although it is still very alive. The newspaper is no longer the primary source of the news now that the internet has become so efficient of updating the readers. Unlike the news paper that would come out maybe twice a day in the big city, the internet and the new channels have given people views on the news for twenty four hours a day whenever they want to know what is going on.
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ReplyDeleteIn both His Girl Friday and Citizen Kane the newspaper business is a topic of critique. Since during the midst of the 20th century there were no portable recording devices or cellphones, gathering information with proof was a challenge to all newspapers. Many of them relied in accounts of eye witnesses and therefore were liable to errors and misinformation. Furthermore, since news did not usually had concrete proofs, many of the newspapers could manipulate data and even spread untruthful information, something that can be seen in both movies in scenes such as William Burns trying to sensationalize the story about the killer so he can make his journal more famous or Charles Kane trying to turn Susan Alexander into a phenomenal singer by producing news in favor of her, twisting the reality. It becomes clear that in that time, news could be shaped to favor a political or social idea – which would often happened in the elections – because most of the means of communication were in the hands of a minority. This oligopoly started to dissolve with the invention of Internet. The amount of available sources of information grew exponentially, decreasing the chance of one having a unilateral view and the liability to be indoctrinated and manipulated. A great example of this was the Arab Spring that occurred in 2010.
The Job of a reporter in the 1940’s was to get the most entertaining story out of a news article possible. This is clearly reflected in both Citizen Kane and His Girl Friday, throughout both motion pictures there are many instances where the paper man (or woman) tries to get the most entertainment value out of a story so that they can ‘sell more newspapers’. For example in His girl Friday Walter and Hildy try to skew the story about the man who is set to be hanged so that it is much more interesting than it really is. Later in the movie when they take Earl Williams (the man who was going to get hanged) out of a desk there are lots of reporters around and even though that earl goes with the police quietly, they still try and make the story bigger and more interesting than it really is. They do this by reporting that he put up a struggle or he wouldn’t go quietly. This shows how they were only concerned with getting the people to by their product, this can also be seen throughout Citizen Kane when Charles shows that he is only concerned with selling newspapers and not so much with reporting the truth. As for how newspapers have changed since these movies came out, they have changed greatly with the introduction of the internet and other mediums of communication not many people read the paper anymore. More and more people are getting their news online from media sources which has made papers and magazines obsolete.
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ReplyDeleteBoth of these films showing new papers and their writers/ editors shows a lot about how important newspapers were during the 40’s and how the newspaper ran everything. First the newspapers were far more important than compared to now due to the fact that there was no other form of media and no other way of people learning of the news. In modern day there people have access to the news twenty-four seven with cell phones and almost always being connected to a computer. But back then before the internet and before cell phones the only way of people getting information was through reading the newspaper. Because of this the reporter world was more cut throat and much more competitive. All of these main characters have constant completion with other reporters and it usually ends with a lonely life. As the watcher sees the protagonist usually ends up not only alone but also hardened by their cut throat job. As the only means of information the reporters are way more important than modern day. Some would consider reporters of the 40’s some of the most influential people because they not only give out the news they shape people’s points of view through the new that they gave out and how they worded the news. The role of the reporter has dramatically changed since the 40’s not only do we now have T.V reporters and other forms of reporter but there are also many new and different ways that people receive the news than back then.
I think that in the two films, His Girl Friday and Citizen Kane, the newspapers and media are portrayed in similarly negative but distinct lights. On the one hand, His Girl Friday criticizes the methods through which news is obtained. Walter and Hildy both use highly questionable tactics in order to write the best story possible. The news teams are consistently portrayed as slightly foolish and highly corrupted. On the other hand, Citizen Kane shows how the power granted to those in charge of the news can corrupt. It is said that absolute power corrupts absolutely and in this film that could not be more spot on. Charles Foster Kane was a simple young man growing up like a fish out of the sea in that he wanted nothing to do with the massive fortune endowed to him. He would much rather run his newspaper, the Inquirer. He drafts a declaration of principles upon which he bases his managing of the newspaper. These include the promise that, “I will provide the people of this city with a daily paper that will tell all the news honestly” and, “I will also provide them with a fighting and tireless champion of their rights as citizens and as human beings”. These principles rapidly fall away as Kane’s paper increases in power and his wealth grows. He is corrupted so extremely that when Jedidiah sends Kane his declaration of principles he tears them up in a fit of rage. These films, on top of stating the corrupting nature of media, also indicate that the newspapers, being the primary source of information, are able to influence the opinions of the masses. Since then, with the rise of other media outlets, the newspaper as we knew it has become obsolete and has morphed into a new format that is less influential than its ancestors.
ReplyDeleteHis Girl Friday and Citizen Kane both show us the immense power of the press in the early 1940s. With limited options for receiving information about the world, newspapers were wildly popular. Both films show that people in positions of power at a newspaper have as much, if not more, societal influence than politicians. In His Girl Friday, the audience sees that Walter Burns has the power to change the outcome of life or death situations, such as the hanging of Earl Williams. The mayor and sheriff want him hanged to further their own political careers, and dishonestly attempt to prove his sanity. If there is proof that he committed a murder in a rational state of mind, he can be executed. Although Walter is only pursuing an interesting story, he convinces Hildy to speak to Earl and to publish an article proving his insanity. Walter knows that the public will accept the word of the newspaper over that of the mayor. To further solidify the influence of the newspaper over the government, Walter plans to expose the corrupt mayor, who ignored Earl’s reprieve. In Citizen Kane, Kane is clearly an influential celebrity. In the newsreel that comes immediately after the opening scene, the narrator says that Kane “swung the election to one American president at least.” His newspaper allowed Kane to have direct access to the public. He could intimately understand people, profit from their needs, and change their opinions however he wanted. By changing the opinions of the public, he could then change the world. Citizen Kane portrays Kane as the most powerful and richest man ever. As television and other forms of communication become more prevalent, newspapers become less sought-after and lose their power. The internet provides an infinite amount of news sources, and people no longer have to limit themselves to one medium. With multiple options, people can no longer be as easily deceived by false reporting, but finding reputable information can be difficult.
ReplyDeleteIn the ever-changing modern world, methods of receiving information continuously evolve. In the 1940s, the public was informed about event, politics, and other affairs predominately through newspaper, while today the Internet has become the melting pot of ideas. The films, His Girl Friday and Citizen Kane, depict the societal role of the newspaper in the 1940s. These films reflect the idea that the information that is contained within the pages of the newspaper is skewed from the truth. The journalists and publishers spice up the stories to achieve an aspect of entertainment, and as a result, selling more papers. The truth, in their perspective, rarely makes for an interesting news story. This notion of manipulating the truth is exemplified in His Girl Friday when the criminal is finally captured. From the pressroom, the journalists individually feed extremely different ‘stories’ back to the newspaper. Similarly, Citizen Kane covers up the truth by publishing the stories about Susan Alexander. The Inquirer suggests that Ms. Alexander is an excellent singer and that the audience adores her. When in reality, she lacks vocal talent and disliked by the audience. Charlie Kane, the publisher of the Inquirer, manipulates the perspective of the public because Susan Alexander is his wife. Both of these films testify to the fact that the newspaper could skew the truth, and therefore having significant influence over public opinion. In 2015, the Internet provides a large array of ideas and information. While this information is still bias, the ease of access to multiple sources allows the public to form an opinion based on several perspectives. This openness of ideas was not possible in the 1940s when people could only obtain a copy of one or two newspapers.
ReplyDeleteIf there is one thing that both Citizen Kane and His Girl Friday establish about the newspaper business it is that it is incredibly chaotic. In both of these films any scene that is around newspaper appears to be going three times the speed of scenes that are elsewhere. There are men screaming, women ferociously dialing phones, sheets of paper flying, and everyone appears to be talking to everyone. Despite, both of these films illustrating the sense of chaos that accompanies paper they both also show us something unique that the other film lacks. In Citizen Kane, Charlie Kane makes it very clear that the newspaper industry requires one to be at the beck and call of outrageous hours. This is proven within the Hollywood montage scene between Mr. Kane and his wife. This scene depicts the nature of Mr. Kane and his first wife’s relationship for the first several years. In the scene the two start off happy having delightful conversation, but at the end they are at one another’s throats arguing on what seems about everything. In the conversation the largest point of disagreement is Mr. Kane’s hours at work. At one point Mrs. Kane confronts Charlie on traveling to the press in the middle of the night for only ten minutes. As a viewer the question is begged: were these strange hours the reason for their divorce? In His Girl Friday a similar idea is at play. In the beginning of the film we learn that Walter and Hildi are recently divorced. In the context it can be understood that once again the failure of their relationship appears to be as a result of the paper business. Hildi makes it very clear that Walter had spent far too much time worrying about the paper and the company. Essentially, both of these films highlight the chaotic aspect of the paper industry, and how one must be entirely devoted to the job or else it will affect their personal lives.
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