I was excited to present my research along with two outstanding scholars, Chris Roush of the University of North Carolina and Tracy Lucht from Iowa State University, at the 2017 Business History Conference in Denver, March 30-April 2. The panel was chaired by my mentor, David Sicilia of the University of Maryland.
Details
Business History Conference Panel Proposal:
The Evolution of Business Journalism, Historical Perspectives
The field of business journalism, long overlooked by historians and media scholars, is getting more attention from researchers as the genre’s influence continues to expand with the global financial marketplace. Some historians argue that business journalism played a central role in the evolution of capitalism. Wayne Parsons writes, “The historical importance of the financial press does not lie so much in its contribution to the development of a literary form as in its role in defining a capitalist language and culture: free markets, individualism, profit and speculation.” Despite its influence, one 2002 review called business journalism one of the areas least investigated by communication scholars.
This panel will feature three scholars who are filling in this gap with new and diverse contributions in the field of business journalism. Tracy Lucht, assistant professor at Iowa State University makes a major contribution with her exploration of Sylvia Porter, the founder of personal finance journalism and one of the most powerful female journalists in U.S. history. Chris Roush, Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished professor at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, describes the life and work of Vermont Royster, editorial page editor of The Wall Street Journal from 1958-1971 during the paper’s pivotal transformation into a modern national newspaper. Rob Wells, assistant professor at the University of Arkansas, describes the evolution of the financial trade press, particularly the innovative National Thrift News and its little-known role ahead of mainstream news media in the savings and loan crisis. Dr. David Sicilia of the University of Maryland, internationally recognized for his research on business history and capitalism, will chair this panel. These scholars will provide important context and insights about this influential aspect of journalism. Underlying all three presentations are perspectives on the power and influence of large businesses and financial markets over American life and the role of the news media in helping the broader public make sense of this opaque and powerful world of business.
Lucht, author of “Sylvia Porter: America’s Original Personal Finance Columnist” (2013, Syracuse University Press), argues Porter’s 60-year career delivered “a message of economic empowerment to 40 million readers through a syndicated newspaper column, a monthly magazine column, and a series of best-selling books.” Porter was one of the most admired women of the twentieth century, yet the significance of her career—and the economic roots of her populist journalism—often get overlooked.
Roush, author of “Thinking Things Over: Vermont Royster’s legacy at the Wall Street Journal” (Marion Street Press, 2014), argues the Wall Street Journal editorial writer was one of the premier journalists in American history. Royster, recipient of two Pulitzer Prizes and a Presidential Medal of Freedom, brought a conservative political viewpoint, particularly on economic events, to the Journal’s influential editorial page. Royster helped shape the publication into what it is today—the country’s largest circulation daily newspaper and a force in influencing what people think about government, politics, and business. “Roush has written a thorough and important account of a man with whom every student of journalism should be familiar,” writes Ann White of Southeastern Missouri State University. “It is an important addition to the history of journalism in America.”
Wells, author of the 2016 doctoral dissertation, “A Reporter’s Paper: The National Thrift News, Journalistic Autonomy and the Savings and Loan Crisis,” analyzes the persistent criticism of business journalism. Business journalism, according to its critics, has been too focused on serving businessmen and stockbrokers and has failed to serve the public by overseeing corporate and market misbehavior. Wells’ paper examines the origins of the critique through the historical and normative foundations of business journalism, from the sixteenth century “price current” publications through the 1989 launch of CNBC, the cable business news channel.
The paper argues business journalism began as an advocate and arm of capitalism that provided “news for the market,” an important legacy that defined the genre’s priorities and worldview. These close ties to the market also have marginalized business journalism in the eyes of the mainstream profession. This conflict between market information provider and market watchdog is central on a much-criticized episode in the history of business journalism: the savings and loan crisis. The national business press came under widespread criticism for failing to aggressively root out fraud and corruption in the savings and loan crisis. This paper adds new empirical evidence about the media’s failure by examining the media coverage of an infamous savings and loan executive, Charles Keating of Lincoln Savings and Loan.
Chairing the panel is Sicilia, Henry Kaufman Fellow in Business History, whose research and teaching center on business, economic, and technology history, with a special emphasis on the history of capitalism. His books range from histories of U.S. entrepreneurs to in-depth corporate histories. Sicilia, along with Jeffrey Cruikshank, authored “The Greenspan Effect: Words that Move the World’s Markets” (McGraw-Hill, 2000) , which Best Business Book of the Year by the Library Journal.