Journalism

"Home of a Rebel Sharpshooter." A soldier finds his final resting place, July 1863.

Why Can’t We Turn Our Eyes Away From the Grotesque and Macabre?

Alexander Gardner’s photographs of Civil War corpses were among the first to play to the uncomfortable attraction humans have for shocking images

Archivists Are Uncovering Lost Mark Twain Stories

Digital archives reveal Samuel Clemens, struggling journalist

Orson Welles (arms raised) rehearses his radio depiction of H.G. Wells' classic, The War of the Worlds. The broadcast, which aired on October 30, 1938, and claimed that aliens from Mars had invaded New Jersey, terrified thousands of Americans.

The Infamous "War of the Worlds" Radio Broadcast Was a Magnificent Fluke

Orson Welles and his colleagues scrambled to pull together the show; they ended up writing pop culture history

Adulation for Lincoln (a Philadelphia lithographer’s viewpoint, 1865) did not become widespread until years after he was killed.

What the Newspapers Said When Lincoln Was Killed

The initial reaction to the president's death was a wild mixture of grief, exultation, vengefulness and fear

Illustration from Nellie Bly's 1887 book Ten Days in a Mad-House, depicting her practicing feigning insanity. Bly's work was originally published as a 17-part series of articles for the New York World.

Before Serial, There Were These Groundbreaking Examples of Serialized Non-Fiction

Can’t wait for the next episode of the podcast series? Take a look at these popular predecessors

Nearly 400 Journalists Have Been Murdered Over the Past Ten Years

Only ten percent of their killers are ever reprimanded

More than 1,200 newspapers serve ethnic communities across America. Current front pages from some of those publications are on display at the Newseum.

News For All: How the Immigrant Experience Shaped American Media

From Benjamin Franklin to Noticiero Univision, the Newseum discusses the profound influence of immigrants on modern news

While LA Journalists Hid Under Desks, a Robot Wrote a Story About the Earthquake

Journalism robots might not be such a bad idea. Especially when you’re trying to stay safe after an earthquake.

Hustle through America's Huckster History with a Smithsonian Curator as Your Guide

A blow by blow of the flimflams and tales of hustlers throughout history, art and literature

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The Top Ten Doctor Who Stories for History Buffs

Fifty years after he was introduced to the world, the Doctor's influence is bigger on the inside

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That Whole Japanese Eyeball Licking Thing Never Really Happened

Never fear. We are not next to suffer from the eyeball licking craze, because that craze never actually existed

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The End of the Henrietta Lacks Saga?

The U.S. National Institutes of Health created an agreement with the Lacks family regarding access to the HeLa genome

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No, Really, the Government Can Read Your Email

More than just metadata, the NSA's systems can track 'nearly everything a user does on the internet'

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The Ten Most Controversial Articles on Wikipedia Might Surprise You

One researcher has quantified the most controversial Wikipedia entires of all time in ten different languages

Thomas, taking notes on Gerald Ford.

Helen Thomas, Trailblazing Female Journalist, Dies at 92

Many credit Thomas with breaking the glass ceiling for women in journalism

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The Incredible Disappearing Evangelist

Aimee Semple McPherson was an American phenomenon even before she went missing for five weeks in 1926.

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Women Appear on Less Than Five Percent of Sports Illustrated Covers

A recent analysis of 11 years of SI covers shows that if you take out the swimsuit issue, women appear just 4.9 percent of the time

Mary Thom, Feminist, Historian and Editor, Dies in Motorcycle Crash at 68

Mary Thom, feminist editor, writer and behind-the-scenes activist, died earlier this week in a motorcycle accident in Yonkers

Before the blows began to rain: Walter Reuther (hand in pocket) and Richard Frankensteen (to Reuther’s left).

How the Ford Motor Company Won a Battle and Lost Ground

Corporate violence against union organizers might have gone unrecorded—if it not for an enterprising news photographer

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What Are You Thinking About?

One researcher recorded the fascinating inner monologues of random people walking, sitting or standing in New York City

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