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Taking on the Trust: The Epic Battle of Ida Tarbell and John D. Rockefeller

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Steve Weinberg, one of America's most accomplished Journalism professors, has taken a "busman's holiday," in writing this fascinating and beautifully researched book. Weinberg, an inspiration to several generations of University of Missouri students, has written about one of his own heroes who no doubt helped influence his rather prestigious academic pathway. He has most satisfyingly delved into the epic battle of a single, brilliant young woman who successfully defined the power of the free press in 1904, pioneering investigative journalist Ida Tarbell who "muckraked" up the expensive and deep sediment underneath Standard Oil, standing alone against the awesome wealth and power of John D. Rockefeller.
Prof. Weinberg is as complete and intimate with his subject as any historian. Infused into this book is his profound sense of appreciation of the fierce, burning integrity and inspirational relentlessness of Ida Tarbell. He makes an excellent case for her monumental, fearless work "The History of the Standard Oil Company," as being the greatest work of investigative journalism ever written. The rich and world-saving traditions of the press in the twentieth century in many ways find their roots in Tarbell and her publisher Samuel McClure, who proved that the battle armor of a democratic society is its free press; without it, the people live in the dark.
This book will give the reader a completely refreshed pride in discovering that history can be riveting. In addition, it holds tremendous insight into the late-nineteenth century roots of the women's movement for equal rights, as well as the revolution for the rights of America's workers at the hands of monopolistic, big business. Ida Tarbell will become one of your new heroes.

Some journalists revel in muckraking reportage, and it doesn't make any difference to them that "muckraking" has been used as a term of opprobrium. There was a time when there was no tradition of newspapers doing investigative reporting; that tradition had to be invented. One of the inventors was Ida Tarbell who let the nation know how John D. Rockefeller was misusing corporate power. She didn't like to be called a muckraker, although she was in favor of reform, and the term had been coined by reform-minded Teddy Roosevelt. She resented that the term stuck to her, but it continues to do so. Rockefeller resented that her portrait of his abusive practices stuck to him, but it continues to do so. Tarbell was a journalistic innovator who deserves to be well known for her historic contributions to reporting and to society, and in _Taking on the Trust: The Epic Battle of Ida Tarbell and John D. Rockefeller_ (Norton) by Steve Weinberg, the story is told in absorbing detail. The book is supposed to tell the story of both main characters, but Weinberg is a reporter himself and can be excused for making Tarbell the star. She is, anyway, a lot more interesting than Rockefeller who didn't have much going for him except for the capacity to make lots of money, the same as many robber barons of the time. Tarbell never had anything close to the money or influence that Rockefeller had, but she won the contest between them, and she was the one proved right after all.

Tarbell shared her family's distrust of Standard Oil. Her father, and later her brother, became independent oil producers, and neither of them sold out to Standard Oil. Plenty of others did; Rockefeller swallowed up competitors and, as he pointed out, the smart ones took Standard Oil stock and became very rich indeed. The ones who tried to stay independent struggled to stay in business. Weinberg documents that her personal feelings may have powered her resolve to tell the Standard Oil story, but that she relied on facts as she had in all her previous researches. Here main revelation in her articles for _McClure's_ magazine was that Standard Oil had beaten out competitors by making secret deals with the railroads that transported its oil. She got the facts by looking at the files of letters kept by Rockefeller's competitors, by checking the records of his Baptist congregation, by looking into the records of governmental investigations into Standard Oil, and by contacting (with the help of Mark Twain) a sort of "Deep Throat" figure within the company itself. She not only connected facts, but she specifically reported about the sources she used; documenting sources is taken for granted now, but it was a novelty that she introduced into reporting. _McClure's_ published her series of articles from 1902 to 1904, the year her _History of the Standard Oil Company_ came out. Those who read her report could scarcely avoid agreeing with her evaluation that Rockefeller "... has introduced into business a spy system of the most odious character. He has turned commerce from a peaceful pursuit to war, and honeycombed it with cruel and corrupt practice, turned competition from honorable emulation to cutthroat struggle."

The Supreme Court in 1911 ruled that Standard Oil's abuses required its breakup, based mostly on evidence that Tarbell had produced. Rockefeller never directly addressed the charges, and he had expertly arranged his business affairs so that he seldom had to testify in any legal proceedings against the company. He barely mentioned Tarbell herself, except to lump her conveniently with "socialists and anarchists"; he was unable to see that Tarbell was an enthusiast for American capitalism fairly conducted. Weinberg's smoothly-written book is a combination of biographies and a narrative centering on one of the first instances of investigative journalism that made a difference. Weinberg says that Tarbell's work is "arguably the greatest work of investigative journalism ever written," and he makes the assessment seem a just one. There have been subsequent examples of how the labor of journalists has resulted in monumental social changes, but it is good to have this book as a reminder of the one that got the ball rolling.

This book is a sort of biography/history of Ida Tarbell and John Rockefeller. It was quite interesting and well written.

One issue I had is that only about 50 pages of the book discusses the articles written by Ms. Tarbell about Rockefeller, which is what the book is supposedly about. The rest of the book discusses the lives of the two before the articles came about. The section of the book devoted to the "confrontation" should have been longer and discussed more detail about the articles she wrote.

Another issue of note is that while the early life of John Rockefeller is discussed equally with Ms. Tarbell at the beginning, the focus shifts almost entirely to Ms. Tarbell. There is no almost no discussion of Mr. Rockefeller's later life.

That said, the book is entertaining and provides good insight into the developments occurring during the late 19th/early 20th centuries.

I got this book based on its title. And, based on the title, was teribly disappointed. Did some marketing dude change the title from "A Biography of Ida Tarbell" to something they thought would sell better?

As a gereral biography of Ida Tarbell it is a pretty good book.

But what is sadly lacking is any information on the process she used and the people she spoke with in creating her articles on Standard Oil. There is no mention about her speaking to anyone, by name, in the oil region. The lack of detail in this section of the book, again with this title, is just astounding. What is also lacking is further information on her family's situation and how that affected her attitude toward Standard Oil. Again, there is so little information in the book in this area.

I am afraid to say that I would not recommend this book to anyone that is looking for information on Ida Tarbell and Standard Oil.

Author Steve Weinberg writes that Ida Tarbell's expose of John D. Rockefeller and his Standard Oil Company is "arguably the greatest work of investigative journalism ever written." As a veteran investigative journalist myself, I wouldn't argue with that because Steve Weinberg is one of the best investigative biographers in our imperiled craft. I say "imperiled" because the newspapers that largely support our work are in an alarming state of decline. Will investigative reporting become a too-expensive luxury? What a horrible tragedy that would be. Ida Tarbell and the legions of investigative journalists who followed her example have been the watchdogs who have made democracy work. This book shows the critical importance of that role, as performed more than a century ago. Thanks to Steve Weinberg for bringing the pioneering Ida Tarbell back to life again today.

I thoroughly enjoyed "Taking on the Trust." Admittedly, I've often not been inclined to finish "academic" books about relatively obscure historical events and people, reading a bit here and there before relegating those books to the bottom of a more "exciting" pile of pulp, pap, pop, and so on.

However, in reading "Taking on the Trust," I wanted to know more about the saga of the intriguing Ida M. Tarbell and the reticent Rockefeller, a familiar name but, for me and no doubt others, not a familiar character. I wanted to turn the page. Each paragraph was loaded with information and lured me on. What more can any reader ask?

Eventually, the pop books get passed on to others, or tossed into a campfire, especially if they aren't any good. A few are worthy of shelf space. Using this criteria, "Taking on the Trust" is a high-quality, successful book, one that will remain of my shelf for a long time.

Steve Weinberg, who knows the territory better than most, makes you feel like you were in the delivery room of the birth of investigative reporting. He gets inside the times and heads of his protagonists, Tarbell and Rockefeller, to deftly set up the dynamic between them: tension, suspicion, a weird combination of loathing and admiration. What I loved about the book was how modern it feels--Tarbell as the prototypical investigative journalist, a writer first and foremost with a lion's heart, who alternately basks in her talents and worries often that she has stepped over the line that demarcates dispassionate journalism from advocacy. Even Weinberg intimates that Tarbell may have now and then crossed that line. Meanwhile, there is Rockefeller, a man not without feeling or sensitivites, who nonetheless cannot escape the notion that his wealth must be some divine sign that he is deserving of it. It isn't hard to flashforward to the contemporary, often rancorous debate over journalistic objectivty versus advocacy, or to see Rockefeller and his attitudes at play in the current economic meltdown. For it has been the new "smartest guys in the room"--echoing Rockefellers greed but propelled by hubris instead of religion--who amount to the Robber Barons of this decade.

Exceptionally well written book by a renowned current day investigative reporter about one of our first and foremost investigative reporters, Ida Tarbell. You'll learn about REAL American history starting with the early days of the oil business, thru the Civil War and into the industrial boom of the early 20th Century. Its an extremely perceptive American historical masterpiece and a real life feminist saga not to be missed by men and women alike.

Having no knowledge of Ida Tarbell but interested in Rockefeller, I found this book a great read.
The author covers the subject in enough detail to make you knowledgable but doesn't get into minutia and bore you.
Ms. Tarbell is definitely a good role model for women and journalists of both sexes. Most current day journalists could revisit her standards.
The book provides plenty of pictures and tells a great story of a forgotten event of the period.

Ida Tarbell was the sister of rockafeller's main rival, so this is hardly an unbiased history! ITS PURE PROPAGANDA! And what was illegal about Stanard Oil producing better & cheaper oil? All the competitors had to do was to do the same. Rockafeller knew how to use all the by-products of the crude oil, which allowed him to make higher profits off his crude. But his competitiors couldn't compete on a level playing field so they had to get the gov'ment to help them. Such is the case with most antitttrust cases. Look at the recent Microsoft lawsuit over its IE browser. Why is it illegal for a company to bundle one of its products w others of its products? Well, because then its comjpetitors find it hard to compete. oh really? well, just make a better browser. AGAIN, IT'S PURE PROPAGANDA!

check out:[ASIN:0945999623 Antitrust and Money: Anatomy of a Policy Failure (Independent Studies in Political Economy)]]opoly. sorry, I tried to insert s link, but this is how it came out. look it up on Amazon. I'm sure they have it.