When muckrake came up as the word of the day on my dictionary app, I decided to take a glance at it even though I knew the meaning. What I found got me to thinking more about words and the role they play in our culture and literature.Call me crazy, but I like to study words, and it is safe to say I am not the only one. In fact, you can even get a degree in linguistics or etymology, the study of words. I am not that diehard, but I do like to study the meaning of words, as well as where they originated, how they evolved, and if they are still in use. It is fascinating when words take on different meanings or are virtually eradicated from discourse. Yet, it is particularly noteworthy when words continue to be prominent in our culture despite the passage of time.
One such example of a word still in fashion is muckrake, which was first used in 1678 with John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress. In this instance, the word was used in the noun form, which is a tool for raking up muck, such as dirt, waste, or waste matter (i.e. manure). Bunyan, however, used the tool as a symbol for the carnal mind, or rather lust. Eventually, the symbol took on the broader concept of the pursuit of wordly gain.When Upton Sinclair wrote The Jungle in 1906, the term shifted to the verb form, meaning "to search for and expose real or alleged corruption, scandal, or the like, especially in politics" (Dictionary.com). As you may recall from studying this piece, "Sinclair's interests were political rather than literary," and thus, Sinclair, and others, were called muckrakers "because by exposing social evils they were raking up muck, or dirt" (Holt et. al 522).
Later in 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt gave his infamous speech "The Man with the Muck-Rake" with the intent to discredit yellow journalism, claiming it ruined the reputation of honest people. However, many in the industry took the muckraker title as a badge of honor and associated it with investigative journalism.I am fairly certain that by the time John Steinbeck wrote The Grapes of Wrath in 1939, the American populace had grown accustomed to the practice of raking up dirt and publishing it in newspapers, books, etc. Nonetheless, many critics took great umbrage with Steinbeck for exposing corruption and placing him in the ranks with other muckrakers. Though I doubt Steinbeck cared much about this label one way or the other, he remains in the top tier of famous muckrakers in America.
My question for all of you is how is the term muckrake applicable to today, and what evidence can you find of it? In other words, what people or organizations are searching for and exposing real or alleged corruption, scandal, or the like, especially in politics? I don't want you to merely bash a person or organization. Instead, think about the people you know, whether personally or on the public stage, and ask yourself if they would be considered a muckraker and why? What has he/she done to expose social evils by raking up dirt? What does this person have to gain or lose from doing this?
When thinking of the word muckrake I picture the journalists behind celebrities that dig up their deepest, darkest secrets. I portray many talk shows to be muckrakers. By watching Inside Edition or other talk shows you will be up to date on many celebrities personal lives and private information, even if everything said isn't completely true. Shows like these have nothing to lose because many people watch their show so if they are making good money, why would it matter to them if Taylor Swift doesn't like them?
ReplyDeleteWhen I think of the term muckrake, I think of politics and how especially presidential candidates, try to dig up "dirt" on each other to make each other sound corrupt and like they're a horrible person, in order to promote themselves and their campaign to get more votes. I also think some journalists and the paparazzi are muckrakers, because they want everyone to be interested in what they publish, so they either make up rumors or state untrue facts about a person in order to get more attention. Even some news channels on TV are biased and try to persuade people who watch their program, to think a certain way. I think that people who are muckrakers, personally have nothing to gain from doing this except for maybe more views or votes, but it makes the person look like they are immature and have a bad character.
ReplyDeleteMuckrakers can be found all over social media. Two of the biggest muckrakers I can think of are E News Rundown and MTV on Snapchat stories. They come up with crazy stories about celebrities and accuse them of things that aren't true. They like to mix the pot and create drama that will boost their ratings. These muckrakers post what they think the public wants to see. They gain viewers but they lose integrity in their work.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think of the word muckrake I think of all of the people who try and uncover political scandals and social issues. One of those examples is the Watergate Scandal by Richard Nixon and the social issues that we face today. One of the people that try and uncover stuff in today's society is Ben Shapiro. For years, Ben has defended his view on political and social issues by telling them the facts and not listening to what celebrities, political parties and actors and actresses have to say on the issue. All he does is try and do what is right and inform the people about the issue at hand. Ben has nothing to loose because many people already hate him because of what he does. What he does have to loose are the people who do follow him and like him. If that happens I don't think he would care at all he would still do the same things as before.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think of the term muckrakers I think of social media and tabloids. There are so many things on social media that are partially true but have had untrue things weaved into the story. Sometimes the story can totally be made up and the publishers just want you to read their magazine or click on the post. Shows like The Real Housewife series or Dance Moms can be considered to be muckrakers because it stirs up drama between the women and kids so people are interested and want to watch the shows. The people participating don't seem like nice people and their whole life revolves around drama.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think of a muckraker, so many things come to mind. There are many people trying to get the inside scoop about the latest scandal or information on a popular celebrity. One thing that really sticks out to me when I think of this word is presidential campaigns. There are so many presidential candidates who go out of their way to dig up some dirt on their fellow competitors so they can get ahead. One of the more recent topics of the last presidential election, and still continues to be brought up in political talks among everyone, is Hilary Clinton's emails. No matter who people side with or what they believe, information like this is dug up and used in presidential elections throughout the years. Overall, there are many muckrakers found throughout presidential campaigns to try and sway voters one way or another.
ReplyDeleteMuckrakers have been in our society for a long time. There is always people that are trying to expose things that our country does. Most the time the people that are trying to uncover secrets that are in the government. There have been many times that muckrakers have been in our country. One example was when the press released the Pentagon Papers. A man saw what the country was doing in the Vietnam War and decided to reveal the secrets. Another time that a scandal was shown was the Watergate Scandal with President Nixon. Nixon was trying to lead a scandal in his reelection and people caught him. He was forced to resign and lost the presidency and his reputation. Muckrakers have been in our country's past and will certainly be seen throughout our future as well.
ReplyDeleteMuckrakers in our current society attempt to divulge information about our county. Some people may even see them as whistle blowers. I would describe the people who wrote the pentagon papers muckrakers. The people who found out about Mark Zuckerburg unlawfully using peoples information. As a society we need these types of people in order to function. We can not have a hidden government, and we can not have hidden major corporations.
ReplyDeleteThere's the big picture muckrakers, such as presidential candidates, who dig up information about their opponents. The allegations may or may not have truth behind them, but, according to the opposition, they are always worth investigating. There are also the smaller muckraking instances in our society, such as people who are underpaid in the fast food industry. What matters is whether those people are willing to complain and bring light to their conditions to try and improve them. Their job may be on the line, but the benefit might be better standards either later or for more people of similar occupation. Muckraking is something that brings change where change is needed. It is a way for the public to be informed if something scandalous is going on that affects them. Muckraking at the very least gets us to start investigating and asking questions.
ReplyDeleteWhen the word muckraker comes to my mind, I think of drama and trouble. To me, a muckraker is a person or group that loves getting involved in scandalous activities only to cause trouble or draw attention to themselves. The biggest example of this is on social media. Popular apps that include Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat and even Facebook include false comments that people post daily. A few months ago, a tweet went out that said Trump likes to get in bed at 6:30pm and eat cheeseburgers while he makes phone calls. This tweet went viral and even though Trump can be interesting sometimes, this tweet was false. I don't believe muckraking will every go away. There will always be people out there that want to start drama.
ReplyDeleteMuckrakers in our world today is anyone wishing for change and striving to disrupt the status quo. Some people may even see them as whistle blowers. I would describe the people who wrote the pentagon papers as muckrakers. The people who found out about Mark Zuckerburg unlawfully using peoples information However, this world needs people like this in order to function. We can not have a hidden government, and we can not have hidden major corporations.There will allows be those people in the world out looking for drama, its just the way our society is today.
ReplyDeleteMuckrakers are still around today through t.v. and social media. One of the most obvious Muckrakers is the CNN news channel, they constantly jump on what ever story or scandal they can get their hands on especially if it involves the president. while their credibility is questionably they still bring many important events into the light whether it be good or bad. One negative about Muckrakers is that they are normally bias, they often look for stories that they want to get out in order to better themselves. Even though they may be bias it is still good for us to know what goes on in the world.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think of the word muckraker I picture a journalist or news/tabloid reporter sniffing out the latest dirt on our celebrities and high-class people. Presidential campaigns are huge when it comes to a muckraker's lifestyle; during these campaigns people are always trying to dig up dirt on the candidates in order to throw off their plans and to attempt to shift the favor of the voters. Celebrities also suffer at the hands of a muckraker's work. Anything they do will be known by the public, it's only a matter of time, which is why they must be careful with anything they do or say. More often than not the people 'digging up the dirt' have nothing to lose, who cares if one or two celebrities hate them? Especially when they have the public behind them craving more information. Muckraking has been around for an extremely long time and, no matter how hard we try, it will never go away because there will always be people who want to expose every secret there is in our society.
ReplyDeleteMuckrakers are all over the world today still. They are in every high school across the world. Every single teenage girl or boy that has ever spread gossip about another could be considered a muckraker. It is easiest to find it in groups of middle/high school girls. They are always gossiping about the latest disaster. They aren't always meaning to ruin somone's reputation but most of the time that is exactly what they are trying to do. A teenage girls nightmare is being the topic of choice at the lunch table. Teenage girls are an excellent example of muckrakers in this era.
ReplyDeleteI think anyone who works in the news or journalism industry is a muckraker. They are always digging up stuff on people and sometimes they are doing more bad than good. People in the news who report on celebrities like TMZ is just a group of muckrakers. They aren't even necessarily true statements, they are just trying to make waves. Same as people who report on the presidential elections, half the time they are biased towards a candidate. But without have muckrakers, society would truly be boring
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