By Kim Todd
Harper, 2021. 400 pages. Nonfiction
In the waning years of the nineteenth century, women journalists across the United States risked reputation and their own safety to expose the hazardous conditions under which many Americans lived and worked. In various disguises, they stole into sewing factories to report on child labor, fainted in the streets to test public hospital treatment, posed as lobbyists to reveal corrupt politicians. Inventive writers whose in-depth narratives made headlines for weeks at a stretch, these “girl stunt reporters” changed laws, helped launch a labor movement, championed women’s rights, and redefined journalism for the modern age.
This was a fascinating look at an infrequently acknowledged chapter in American history. This title will have particular appeal for readers interested in women's issues: many of the problems examined by stunt reporters will be easily recognizable to any woman living today. And yet, we have much to thank them for, as they exposed harsh working conditions, blatant sexism, wage-gaps, and more in ways so impactful that laws were created to help protect workers and the general populace. There is still ground to cover in these areas, but these women helped get these movements off the ground. The reader for this book is particularly well-chosen, as her voice evokes newsreels of the early 20th century.
If you like Sensational, you might also like:
By Dorothy Butler Gilliam
Center Street, 2019. 368 pages. Biography
The barrier-breaking civil-rights journalist presents a comprehensive view of racial relations and the media in the U.S. that draws on her personal and professional experiences to celebrate the behind-the-scenes victories that have shaped decades of struggle.
By John Norris
Viking, 2015. 352 pages. Biography
Before there was Maureen Dowd or Gail Collins or Molly Ivins, there was Mary McGrory. She was a trailblazing columnist who achieved national syndication and reported from the front lines of American politics for five decades. From her first assignment reporting on the Army–McCarthy hearings to her Pulitzer-winning coverage of Watergate and controversial observations of President Bush after September 11, McGrory humanized the players on the great national stage while establishing herself as a uniquely influential voice.
BHG
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