Magazine Journalism in the Golden Age of Muckraking: Patent-Medicine Exposures Before and After the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906

Abstract

Although studies in mass communication and investigative journalism have examined associations between newspaper reporting and policy formation, little research has focused on the policy influence of magazine coverage. In addition, given research questions that implicitly or explicitly conclude with policy implementation, studies have tended to analyze materials prior to the passage of legislation with little attention paid to subsequent reporting. This monograph examines magazine coverage of patent medicines before and after the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 became law. Patent medicines, which appeared in the form of cure-alls, headache remedies, and soothing syrups, emerged long before the federal government regulated substances such as morphine and cocaine, and nostrums often included these substances in addition to alcohol. Near the turn of the 20th century, magazine journalists began to draw attention to the hazards associated with patent medicines, building an agenda for policy reform. The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 required manufacturers to list habit-forming substances and the quantities of those substances on product labels, and sales showed an appreciable decline; however, companies continued to profit. An examination of magazine articles showed that, in addition to patent-medicine manufacturers, newspapers received significant criticism for advancing industry interests through advertising. As a partial result of outlandish claims made in advertisements, problems with patent medicines continued after implementation of the Pure Food and Drug Act. Government officials and the U.S. Supreme Court were among those who undermined the 1906 law. Implications for investigative journalism, history, and public policy are discussed.