Muckrakers During the Progressive Era Saanvi Kunisetty

 Muckrakers During the Progressive Era

Saanvi Kunisetty

Muckrakers were writers, typically novelists or journalists, who worked to expose the corruption and questionable practices taking place in businesses, such as monopolization. They also strived to raise awareness about poverty and the devastating living conditions that common people faced due to industrialization. Their work was an essential component of the movement led by labor unions during this time period, which sought to provide workers with proper rights, specifically against powerful businesses and corporations. Many well-known muckrakers were women, including Ida Tarbell and Ida B. Wells. Their familiarity with oppression due to the underprivileged lives that they led caused them to become tremendously influential during the Progressive Era. One of the most renowned muckrakers was Jacob Riis, an immigrant and photojournalist, best known for publishing a photo essay which was published in Scribner’s magazine, and later as a book. It brought awareness to the society about the despicable conditions that immigrants in New York City faced. Called 

Resources: 

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/rise-to-world-power/age-of-empire/a/muckrakers