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| 1916 Easter Rising in Ireland, a Milestone of Foreign Reporting | |
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| The Easter Rising lasted only five days. Yet the 1916 uprising by Irish rebels garnered more than 50 articles in The New York Times, which kept the story on its front page for more than two weeks. | The Easter Rising lasted only five days. Yet the 1916 uprising by Irish rebels garnered more than 50 articles in The New York Times, which kept the story on its front page for more than two weeks. |
| The intense coverage of the rebellion that began 100 years ago this week reflected an important moment not just for Ireland, but for Irish America and The Times itself, historians say. | The intense coverage of the rebellion that began 100 years ago this week reflected an important moment not just for Ireland, but for Irish America and The Times itself, historians say. |
| The rebels’ attempt to throw off several hundred years of British rule failed, leaving more than 400 people dead and parts of Dublin in ruins, but it also helped inspire a broader movement that led to independence in 1922. | The rebels’ attempt to throw off several hundred years of British rule failed, leaving more than 400 people dead and parts of Dublin in ruins, but it also helped inspire a broader movement that led to independence in 1922. |
| The revolt broke out in the middle of World War I, a conflict that imposed profound practical difficulties on reporters, said Robert Schmuhl, a professor at the University of Notre Dame. | The revolt broke out in the middle of World War I, a conflict that imposed profound practical difficulties on reporters, said Robert Schmuhl, a professor at the University of Notre Dame. |
| Wartime censorship governed the news media in Britain. When the revolt in Ireland began, communication links were severed between Dublin and London, where most American reporters were based. | Wartime censorship governed the news media in Britain. When the revolt in Ireland began, communication links were severed between Dublin and London, where most American reporters were based. |
| The lack of reliable information was highlighted by a wire service dispatch published by The Times on April 28: “Dublin is further from London today than Peking is from New York, so far as communication for the general public is concerned.” | The lack of reliable information was highlighted by a wire service dispatch published by The Times on April 28: “Dublin is further from London today than Peking is from New York, so far as communication for the general public is concerned.” |
| American reporters and readers were not the only ones left in the dark. | American reporters and readers were not the only ones left in the dark. |
| “There was initially a lot of confusion over who was involved in the Rising” among the Irish as well, said Fearghal McGarry, a historian at Queen’s University in Belfast. “There were a lot of rumors sweeping the country, and there was a sense that Germany might have been involved.” | “There was initially a lot of confusion over who was involved in the Rising” among the Irish as well, said Fearghal McGarry, a historian at Queen’s University in Belfast. “There were a lot of rumors sweeping the country, and there was a sense that Germany might have been involved.” |
| The problems with access led The Times to base most of its early reports, which were written in London, on government statements, interviews with travelers who had recently returned from Dublin, and anti-rebel Irish politicians in Britain. | The problems with access led The Times to base most of its early reports, which were written in London, on government statements, interviews with travelers who had recently returned from Dublin, and anti-rebel Irish politicians in Britain. |
| “You have a situation where there is very little access to hard facts in Dublin because communication lines had been cut and censorship was enforced — and yet The Times is doing as best it can to keep readers apprised of an ongoing and unpredictable story,” Dr. Schmuhl said. | “You have a situation where there is very little access to hard facts in Dublin because communication lines had been cut and censorship was enforced — and yet The Times is doing as best it can to keep readers apprised of an ongoing and unpredictable story,” Dr. Schmuhl said. |
| Reports from London were supplemented by stories written in New York and drawn from interviews with Irish-American leaders, who explained the island’s politics to American readers. | Reports from London were supplemented by stories written in New York and drawn from interviews with Irish-American leaders, who explained the island’s politics to American readers. |
| Much of that discussion was included in a New York Times Magazine piece, “Ireland’s Sudden Revolt,” published just days after the Rising began. | Much of that discussion was included in a New York Times Magazine piece, “Ireland’s Sudden Revolt,” published just days after the Rising began. |
| “We talk about technology allowing us to do things so quickly in journalism today, but here is a major story on an event that leads the Sunday magazine of the paper the week that it occurred,” Dr. Schmuhl said. | “We talk about technology allowing us to do things so quickly in journalism today, but here is a major story on an event that leads the Sunday magazine of the paper the week that it occurred,” Dr. Schmuhl said. |
| It was a “pretty amazing” feat given the complexity of the conflict and the barriers to reporting on it, he added. | It was a “pretty amazing” feat given the complexity of the conflict and the barriers to reporting on it, he added. |
| A sampling of Times coverage from 1916 illustrates how its correspondents went all out to capture the story: | A sampling of Times coverage from 1916 illustrates how its correspondents went all out to capture the story: |
| The fog of war led to some reports that have not held up well over time. The very first New York Times dispatch, published one day after the conflict began, focused on the arrest of Sir Roger Casement, an Irish-British diplomat taken into custody after arriving in Ireland aboard a German ship. | The fog of war led to some reports that have not held up well over time. The very first New York Times dispatch, published one day after the conflict began, focused on the arrest of Sir Roger Casement, an Irish-British diplomat taken into custody after arriving in Ireland aboard a German ship. |
| Historians now say that Mr. Casement traveled to Ireland in part to stop the Rising before it started, but British officials at the time saw him as a rebel leader entwined in a German plot to turn Ireland into a new theater of war against Britain, Dr. Schmuhl said. Newspapers reports from that period reflected the inaccurate official view. He was hanged for treason by the British in August 1916. | Historians now say that Mr. Casement traveled to Ireland in part to stop the Rising before it started, but British officials at the time saw him as a rebel leader entwined in a German plot to turn Ireland into a new theater of war against Britain, Dr. Schmuhl said. Newspapers reports from that period reflected the inaccurate official view. He was hanged for treason by the British in August 1916. |
| So why did The New York Times devote so much coverage to a brief revolt in a small corner of Europe? | So why did The New York Times devote so much coverage to a brief revolt in a small corner of Europe? |
| It may have been in part The Times’s determination to cement its standing as the newspaper of record in the United States, Dr. Schmuhl said. Two years after the rebellion, its comprehensive reporting from Europe won the first-ever Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. | It may have been in part The Times’s determination to cement its standing as the newspaper of record in the United States, Dr. Schmuhl said. Two years after the rebellion, its comprehensive reporting from Europe won the first-ever Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. |
| Irish America was also a factor. A new documentary produced by Notre Dame, “1916 The Irish Rebellion,” argues that the depth of coverage in the American news media reflected the growing clout of Irish-Americans, millions of whom lived (and bought newspapers) in cities like New York. Many were passionate supporters of Irish independence. | Irish America was also a factor. A new documentary produced by Notre Dame, “1916 The Irish Rebellion,” argues that the depth of coverage in the American news media reflected the growing clout of Irish-Americans, millions of whom lived (and bought newspapers) in cities like New York. Many were passionate supporters of Irish independence. |
| But the Rising was not initially popular in Ireland, where many people’s struggle to make ends meet was disrupted. “There was a lot of hostility in the streets of Dublin, especially from working class people whose houses or family lives were destroyed,” said Dr. McGarry. | But the Rising was not initially popular in Ireland, where many people’s struggle to make ends meet was disrupted. “There was a lot of hostility in the streets of Dublin, especially from working class people whose houses or family lives were destroyed,” said Dr. McGarry. |
| Public opinion changed sharply, however, with Britain’s crackdown after the Rising. It arrested thousands of rebel sympathizers and executed their leaders, who became national heroes. The Times reported on the executions as they happened, a few each day for nine days, starting on May 4. | Public opinion changed sharply, however, with Britain’s crackdown after the Rising. It arrested thousands of rebel sympathizers and executed their leaders, who became national heroes. The Times reported on the executions as they happened, a few each day for nine days, starting on May 4. |
| “I think it’s a classic case study of the way that journalism can shape public opinion over a relatively short period of time,” Dr. Schmuhl said. “With the executions you see the rebels evolve from these somewhat adventurous combatants to people that are considered martyrs to the cause.” | “I think it’s a classic case study of the way that journalism can shape public opinion over a relatively short period of time,” Dr. Schmuhl said. “With the executions you see the rebels evolve from these somewhat adventurous combatants to people that are considered martyrs to the cause.” |