what is a muckraker

A muckraker is a term used to describe reform-minded journalists, writers, and photographers in the Progressive Era in the United States (1890s–1920s) who claimed to expose corruption and wrongdoing in established institutions, often through sensationalist publications. They were investigative journalists who sought to expose corruption in big business and government. The term "muckraker" was initially pejorative when used by U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt in his speech of April 14, 1906, but it later took on favorable connotations of social concern and courageous exposition. The work of muckrakers grew out of the yellow journalism of the 1890s, which whetted the public appetite for news arrestingly presented, and out of popular magazines. Some of the key issues that muckrakers reported on include crime, fraud, waste, public health and safety, graft, and illegal financial practices. The work of muckrakers was crucial in exposing injustices and corruption in society, and their reporting often had a more immediate impact than writing to Congress in hopes of correcting abuses.