William Randolph Hearst

William Randolph Hearst (April 29, 1863 – August 14, 1951) was an American newspaper magnate, born in San Francisco, California.

Business

William studied at Harvard University (1882–1885), but was expelled for sending faculty members chamber-pots with the recipient's picture adorning the inside bottom.

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Searching for an occupation, in 1887 he took over management of a newspaper which his father had accepted as payment of a gambling debt, the San Francisco Examiner. Giving his paper a grand motto, "Monarch of the Dailies", he acquired the best equipment and the most talented writers of the time. A self-proclaimed populist, Hearst went on to publish exposes of municipal and financial corruption, often attacking companies in which his own family held an interest. Within a few years, his paper dominated the San Francisco market.

Related Topics:
1887 - San Francisco Examiner

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In 1895, with the financial support of his mother, Hearst bought the failing New York Morning Journal, hiring writers like Stephen Crane and Julian Hawthorne and entering into a head-to-head circulation war with his former mentor, Joseph Pulitzer, owner of the New York World, from whom he 'stole' Richard F. Outcault, the inventor of color comics. The New York Journal (later New York Journal-American) reduced its price to one cent and attained unprecedented levels of circulation through sensational and dishonest articles on subjects like crime and pseudoscience; the paper's bellicosity in foreign affairs was notorious — on the Cuban Insurrection, for example. Both Hearst and Pulitzer published images of Spanish troops placing Cubans into concentration camps where they suffered and died from disease and hunger. These images and stories were often fake or created to sell more newspapers. The term yellow journalism, which was derived from the name of "The Yellow Kid" comic strip in the Journal, was used to refer to the sensational style of newspaper articles that resulted from this competition.

Related Topics:
1895 - New York Morning Journal - Stephen Crane - Julian Hawthorne - Joseph Pulitzer - New York World - Richard F. Outcault - Comics - Crime - Pseudoscience - Cuba - Spanish - Concentration camps - Yellow journalism - The Yellow Kid

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In part to aid in his political ambitions, Hearst opened newspapers in other cities, among them Chicago, Los Angeles and Boston. By the mid-1920s he had a nation-wide string of 28 newspapers, among them the Los Angeles Examiner, the Boston American, the Chicago Examiner, the Detroit Times, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and the Washington Times and Washington Herald. In 1924 he opened the New York Daily Mirror, a racy tabloid frankly imitating the New York Daily News. Among his other holdings were the magazines Cosmopolitan, and Harper's Bazaar; two news services, Universal News and International News Service; King Features Syndicate; a film company, Cosmopolitan Productions; extensive New York City real estate; and thousands of acres of land in California and Mexico, along with timber and mining interests.

Related Topics:
Los Angeles Examiner - Boston American - Chicago Examiner - Detroit Times - Seattle Post-Intelligencer - Washington Times - Washington Herald - New York Daily Mirror - Tabloid - New York Daily News - Cosmopolitan - Harper's Bazaar - Universal News - International News Service - King Features Syndicate

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Though he did serve two terms in the US Congress, Hearst's political ambitions were mostly frustrated. Conceding an end to his political hopes, from about 1917 he lived openly with the actress Marion Davies in California, while his wife and five sons remained in New York. Mrs. Hearst built a life for herself as a leading philanthrophist, active in society, and creating in 1921 the Free Milk Fund for the poor. Beginning in 1919, Hearst built (and never completed) a spectacular castle on a 240,000 acre (970 km2) ranch at San Simeon, California, which he furnished with antiques and art-objects bought in Europe. He also bought another castle in St Donat's near Llantwit Major in South Wales. As with San Simeon, he spent a fortune renovating the castle, bringing electricity not only to the castle but to the surrounding area. The locals enjoyed having Hearst in residence at the castle; he paid his employees very well, and his arrivals always created a big stir in a community not used to American excesses.

Related Topics:
US Congress - Marion Davies - Philanthrophist - Free Milk Fund - Castle - San Simeon, California - St Donat's - Llantwit Major - South Wales

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He created an extensive armoury at St Donat's from pieces he collected from all over the world. Here he spent much of his time entertaining influential people. Unlike life in the U.S., Wales was a place where Marion Davies could appear openly as his partner. Reportedly Mrs. Hearst visited St Donat's once and never returned.

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The Hearst news empire reached a circulation and revenue peak about 1928, but the economic collapse of the Great Depression and the vast over-extension of his empire cost him control of his holdings. It is unlikely that the newspapers ever paid their own way; mining, ranching and forestry provided whatever dividends the Hearst Corporation paid out. When the collapse came, all Hearst properties were hit hard, but none more so than the papers; adding to the burden were the Chief's now-reactionary politics, increasingly at odds with those of his readers. Refused the right to sell another round of bonds to unsuspecting investors, the shaky empire tottered. Unable to service its existing debts, Hearst Corporation faced a court-mandated reorganization in 1936. From this point, Hearst was just another (though exceedingly well-paid) employee, subject to the directives of an appointed manager. Newspapers and other properties were liquidated, the film company shut down; there was even a well-publicized sale of art and antiquities, which brought Hearst-purchased art to the nation's department stores. While World War II would restore circulation and advertising reveunes, his great days were over. Hearst died in 1951, aged eighty-eight, at Beverly Hills, California, and is buried at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park in Colma, California.

Related Topics:
1928 - Great Depression - 1936 - World War II - 1951 - Beverly Hills, California - Cypress Lawn Memorial Park - Colma, California

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The Hearst Corporation continues to this day as a large, privately-held media conglomerate based in New York City.

Related Topics:
Hearst Corporation - Media conglomerate

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