The Progressive Era | The Muckrakers | 2

American History Tellers

Wondery

Society & Culture, Kids & Family, History, Education For Kids

4.7 • 18.3K Ratings

🗓️ 14 May 2025

⏱️ 46 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In the early 1900s, a new generation of crusading writers and journalists captured the nation’s attention by digging up dirt on big business and government and advocating for change. They became known as “muckrakers.” Ida Tarbell exposed the ruthless machinations of John D. Rockefeller, the tycoon who built Standard Oil. Lincoln Steffens exposed bribery in city governments across America. And Upton Sinclair chronicled the horrific conditions in Chicago’s meat packing plants and slaughterhouses. But in galvanizing public support for progressive reform, they also clashed with President Theodore Roosevelt, who was fighting his own battles with conservatives in Congress.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, history buffs, if you can't get enough of the captivating stories we uncover on American
0:04.7	history tellers, you'll love the exclusive experience of Wondry Plus.
0:08.4	Dive even deeper into the past with ad-free episodes, early access to new seasons, and
0:13.0	bonus content that brings history to life like never before.
0:16.2	Join Wondery Plus in the Wondry app or on Apple Podcast and embark on an unparalleled journey through America's most pivotal moments.
0:37.1	Imagine it's early morning in November 1904, and you're walking through a Chicago meat
0:42.1	packing plant.
0:43.1	You try to ignore the sour metallic stench that clings to the back of your throat.
0:48.1	You're a writer collecting research for a novel on the struggles of immigrant workers in the
0:52.5	city's stockyards, slaughterhouses,
0:54.3	and packing planes. And today, you're undercover, clutching a lunch pail by your side,
0:59.4	hoping that it'll help you blend in with the workers filing in for the day shift.
1:03.3	You approach one worker, sweeping scraps of raw sinew and fat into a rusted metal bucket.
1:09.0	His hands are red and cracked from the cold,
1:11.5	and his sweeping leaves a bloodied trail across the sawdust-covered floor.
1:15.7	Give him a nod.
1:16.9	Hey, good morning.
1:18.3	He looks up sharply, as the expression drawn and wary.
1:21.4	Morning?
1:22.1	What you doing there?
1:23.6	You knew here I'm collecting yesterday's scraps.
1:26.4	Oh, doesn't the late shift do clean up?
	...

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