Yellow Journalism.

The emergence e of modern mass media has generated a great enthusiasm among intellectuals and general people as well, in the earlier of this century. The Mass circulated news papers appear in all the countries as educators, jurists as ideal mentor to the public. The basic function of mass media to influence the public opinion has started getting momentum. But more concentration on entertainment and circulation of the news papers bring a diversion from ethical practice in this noble field of journalism. It has caused great anxiety about Media’s alleged baneful influence on individual’s moral outlook and behavior. Not only the newspaper, but all the media including electronic media are indulging such practice of neglecting any ethical value. Yellow journalism, at its worst, is the new journalism without any objective. Trumpeting the concern for the people the media practitioners of both print and electronic media infiltrate the yellow journalism to affect common people using several news channels. Yellow journalism is a kind of sensational, gaudy and irresistible devil in journalism. It turns the high drama of life into a cheap melodrama twisting the information in their best suited way to make a howling newstay. Yellow journalism offers a palliative of sin, sex and violence to the readers.

The origin of the term ‘Yellow Journalism’ dates back to the later half of the 19^th century (1894). When an U.S Publisher, Joseph Politzer paper, introduces comic strip entitled ‘Shanty Town’ with a cartoon character of a child with a yellow dress which becomes known as the yellow kid. The man who more than anyone else brought about the era of yellow journalism is William Randolph Hearst. As a very controversial journalist Hearst was well known for his practical jokes. He started such a stylist joke strip ‘yellow kid’ in his paper New York Journal.’ yellow kid’ made a breezy headway with sensational journalism. as a symbol the term yellow journalism is coined from this column. Yellow kid with end of previous century the trend of sensationalism gets wide popularity and the newspapers from Europe adopt the technique of news presentation from the United States.

Yellow journalism replaces serious journalism in many cases irrespective of countries, media or situation. Especially the tabloid newspapers are totally banking on such sensationalism. They are quickly read and forgotten. Yellow journalism born in the atmosphere of society after rapid industrialization and cultural degradation. This creates unnecessary tension and abnormal state of mind and brings anarchy among individuals and society.