You really can't believe everything you read . . .

A premature newswire report announces the end of World War I, spurring wild celebrations in American streets days before the actual treaty was signed. A St. Louis newspaper prints reviews of theatrical performances that never took place--they had been canceled due to bad weather. New York newspaper reporters plant evidence in the apartment of the man accused of kidnapping the Lindbergh baby and then call him a liar in the courtroom once the trial begins.

These are just a few of the many wrongs that have been reported as right over two centuries of American history. All the News Unfit to Print puts the media under the microscope to expose the many types of mistakes, hoaxes, omissions, and lies that have skewed our understanding of the past, and reveals the range of reasons and motivations--from boredom and haste to politics and greed-behind them. Reviewing a host of journalistic slip-ups involving Ben Franklin, Mark Twain, William Randolph Hearst, Theodore H. White, and many others, this book covers the stories behind the stories to refine incorrect first drafts of history from the Revolutionary War era to more recent times.

All the News Unfit to Print is a rollicking joyride that careens through the ridiculous, the odd, and the serious malfeasances in American journalistic history and reminds us of the difference between news and facts.

--Neal Gabler, author of Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination

This historical review of American journalism compares actual events such as the Lindbergh kidnapping and the sinking of the U.S.S. Maine to the distorted and biased version presented by the media at the time. Burns, a noted journalist and news analyst, presents numerous examples of how the media "got it wrong," and then describes the motivations (such as "getting the scoop" or committing an outright hoax) that cause these slip-ups. History buffs and general audiences will appreciate stories that include such historical figures as Benjamin Franklin, Samuel Clemens and William Randolph Hearst. Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Well-known media analyst Burns looks at how journalists have misreported history in this follow-up to his critically-acclaimed book "Infamous Scribblers."

Well-known media analyst Eric Burns looks at how journalists have misreported history in this follow-up to his critically acclaimed book Infamous Scribblers

In Infamous Scribblers, Eric Burns revealed how early American journalists represented and misrepresented the events and leaders of the day in coverage that was partisan, fabricated, scandalous, and sensationalistic, and sometimes stirring, brilliant, and indispensable. Now he puts the media under the microscope again, from Ben Franklin and Sam Adams through Mark Twain, William Randolph Hearst, H. L. Mencken, and Walter Duranty (arguably the most unethical journalist to win a Pulitzer) to the modern day. He shows how the media got history wrong and how those mistakes have been magnified and distorted over time, changing our view and understanding of the past.

Eric Burns (New York, NY), a media critic and journalist, is the former host of Fox News's acclaimed Fox News Watch and a veteran of NBC Nightly News, Today, and Entertainment Tonight. He has written on media and popular culture for the New York Post, the Los Angeles Times, Reader's Digest, the Weekly Standard, Family Circle, and other publications. His books include Infamous Scribblers (978-1-58648-334-0) and Virtue, Valor, and Vanity (978-1-55970-858-6).

PART ONE.

Chapter One: How Journalists Got the Idea.

Chapter Two: Journalism from Afar.

Chapter Three: A Woman Who Never Was.

Chapter Four: Lies Against the British.

Chapter Five: Lies Against Americans.

Chapter Six: The Boss.

Chapter Seven: The Epoch of the Hoax.

Chapter Eight: Furnishing A War.

Chapter Nine: L’ Affaire.

Chapter Ten: Speeding Up A War.

PART TWO.

Chapter Eleven: Their Man in Moscow.

Chapter Twelve: Sins of Omission.

Chapter Thirteen: The Same Team.

Chapter Fourteen: Rejecting the Faith.

Chapter Fifteen: Janet’s World.

Chapter Sixteen: What A Picture Is Worth.

Chapter Seventeen: The Most Hated Man in America’s Newsrooms.

Chapter Eighteen: What Haste Makes.

Epilogue: A Few Final Mistakes.

A Note to Readers.

Acknowledgments.

Notes.

Bibliography.

Index.