S8 Ep1119: William Randolph Hearst and the "Soak the Rich" Tensions Guest: David Pietrusza Book Title: Roosevelt Sweeps Nation: FDR's 1936 Landslide and the Triumph of the Liberal Ideal One of the most formidable figures Roosevelt had to manage was media tycoon Will

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John Batchelor

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🗓️ 12 July 2026

⏱️ 10 minutes

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Summary

William Randolph Hearst and the "Soak the Rich" Tensions Guest: David Pietrusza Book Title: Roosevelt Sweeps Nation: FDR's 1936 Landslide and the Triumph of the Liberal Ideal One of the most formidable figures Roosevelt had to manage was media tycoon William Randolph Hearst, who controlled a vast empire of 28 newspapers and eight radio stations. Hearst's political allegiances were notoriously fickle; he had supported Roosevelt in 1932 only after caving to pressure to avoid a candidate he liked even less. However, as the New Deal moved leftward, Hearst became increasingly hostile. His power was so great that in 1934 he visited Adolf Hitler in Berlin. While Hearst claimed the meeting was brief, other accounts suggest a longer discussion where Hearst attempted to raise the issue of the persecution of Jews, though the visual of the meeting severely damaged his reputation. The final break between Hearst and Roosevelt came over the President's "Soak the Rich" tax program. Hearst, who earned over $100 million a year, was outraged by the proposal to raise taxes on the wealthy. In response, Roosevelt privately noted that it might be necessary to "throw 46 men who make a million dollars a year to the wolves," including Hearst. Hearst subsequently ordered his editors to promote Republican candidate Alf Landon, using his "column inches" to saturate the public with pro-Landon content. Despite this media onslaught, Hearst's popularity was in decline, and Roosevelt's willingness to confront the nation's wealthiest interests resonated with a public still struggling through the Great Depression. (5)

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0:25.9	This is a high-risk investment and you should not expect to be protected if something goes wrong.
0:35.3	This is CBS Eye on the World.
0:38.5	Here's John Batchelor.
0:41.2	Roosevelt Sweeps Nation, the new book from David Petrucia, FDR's 1936 landslide, and the triumph of the liberal ideal.
0:49.6	From the point of view of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, there are figures on his left, there are figures
0:55.5	on his right, there are figures who represent the Communist Party, there are figures who represent
1:01.0	outright celebration of the dictators in Europe at this time, Mussolini and Hitler. But there
1:08.3	is one figure that represents all of the above or none of the above depending
1:12.3	on the day of the week. William Randolph Hearst, born 1863. He is 72 years old, 73 years old at this
1:23.2	point, and yet he can pick up the phone and reach anybody in America, including the President of the United
1:29.8	States. David, it is a complication to summarize Hearst. With Roosevelt in particular, he was for him
1:38.9	before he was against him, before he was for him, before he was against him. Let's keep ourselves
1:43.8	right now to 32 to 36.
1:47.1	What was Hearst's opinion of Roosevelt in the campaign of 32 facing Herbert Hoover?
1:54.2	Didn't like him, didn't like Hoover, didn't like Al Smith, didn't like anyone except John
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