What Pulitzer prized

Joseph Pulitzer, the newspaper publisher best remembered today for the prizes made possible through his legacy, often criticized his children, especially his sons, for their lack of ambition, for being spoiled by wealth.

Yet the old man himself, as described in Pulitzer: A Life in Politics, Print. and Power (2010) by James McGrath Morris, acted much the same way himself once he had made his fortune. He owned thriving newspapers in both New York City and St. Louis, yet in the latter half of his life he spent most of his time in Europe or at sea. He often left his family behind, but he took along many underlings who pampered him, read to him because of his poor vision and made arrangements for his comfort, such as by making sure his rooms were as soundproof as possible. He was sensitive to every stray sound.

As a younger man, however, Pulitzer made his great fortune through nonstop ambition. Although "accuracy, accuracy, accuracy" became his cry at his newspapers, he himself lied at will when it benefited his position. He lied frequently about his age as a teenager in order to get an early start on his career.

His editorial pages regularly blasted the wealthy class, the very people he mingled with and spent winters with at Jekyll Island.

He may have made his money in journalism, but Morris makes clear that Pulitzer's true love was politics. He had the misfortune, however, of being a Democrat in the post-Civil War years when Republicans won the White House every four years. He sought political office himself, both in St. Louis and New York, yet when he was finally elected to Congress, he quickly realized that a congressman had much less power than the publisher of a great newspaper, and he promptly resigned.

Another dark side to his personality came through his treatment of his younger brother. He regarded Albert as a hated rival, perhaps even more hated than William Randolph Hearst. While Joseph owned the thriving New York World, Albert owned the New York Morning Journal, which was not as successful yet was still too successful for his big brother. He once hired away Albert's entire staff.

Joseph Pulitzer may have been a great man. He just wasn't a very good man.