When looking back at the history of the media’s role in the American Presidency, it is easy to see many comparisons to today. President Donald Trump’s dilemma with the media is not much different than that two of his predecessors faced, John Adams and Andrew Jackson. Both men lived in a time that saw vicious attacks on their character by the media. President Adams was seen as a monarchist despite the role he played in America’s independence. President Jackson was referred to as “King Andrew I” because he utilized the full power of the presidency, something that his predecessors had failed to do.
In a three-part series, this work will look at how the media played a role in characterizing both Adams (as vice president during his first term and as president) and Jackson (as president) while also looking at how both men battled against their relentless attacks.
Here, Ian Craig starts the series by looking at Adams’ time as Vice President (1789-1797).
You can read Ian’s previous article on possibly the most important reason for the American Revolution here.
Portrait of John Adams while he was Vice-President in the 1790s.
America’s First Vice President and the Media
Adams’ first battle with the media as vice president came while he led a debate in the Senate. According to the Constitution, the vice president will serve as the president of the senate. However, the role of vice president was largely intended to be ceremonial and had little power. This meant that in the Senate, Adams had no real authority but to break tie votes. This was something that Adams had to learn the hard way. One of the first debates in the Senate was over what the president should be addressed as. Adams opted to lead the way in this debate much to the displeasure of the senators. Adams believed that “if the central government was to have greater authority and importance than the state governments, then the titles of federal office ought to reflect that.”[1] This meant that the president of the United States needed a title that was befitting of such an office. Adams gave such suggestions as “His Majesty the President.” Some senators supported Adams’ desire for titles in debating the title “His Highness the President of the United States.” However, this did not sit well with many people nor the media at the time.
The media was quick to point out that the Constitution forbade titles of nobility in the United States. It was at this point that many came to suggest that Adams’ time abroad had tainted him to the monarchies of Europe. To John Adams, this was not the case and he simply believed that respect should be given to the central government and to those who held office within it. This was his idea of helping to secure the sovereignty of the government both at home and abroad. This explanation did not stop the media from its continued attacks on Adams’ character and his intentions. In 1791 Thomas Paine had published a work called The Rights of Man. Thomas Jefferson, who was then Secretary of State, had sent it to a publisher in Philadelphia calling it the answer to the “political heresies that have sprung among us.”[2] The publisher printed the work with Jefferson’s own words on the front page causing the public to link political heresies to Adams. This did more to hurt the Vice President and his credibility seeing that his friend and soon to be chief rival viewed him in such a way. Of course, Jefferson had not intended for the publisher to spin his words in that way nor make the connection that Adams wanted to take away the rights of man.
Adams’ Defense
The Media jumped on this and the New Haven Gazette called Adams an “unprincipled libeler” who loved monarchy and had an antipathy to freedom.[3] In response to the newspaper’s claim, Adams said “if you suppose that I have ever had a design or desire of attempting to introduce a government of kings, lords, and commons, or in other words a hereditary executive, or hereditary senate, either into the government of the Unit States…you are wholly mistaken.”[4] To put it simply, the Vice President’s insistence on titles had made him increasingly unpopular and his continued desire to share his opinions in the Senate made him even more so. The media and rivals began to paint a picture of Adams as a monarchist instead of the democracy seeking founding father he was. In addition to this attack, the Republican media in the Aurora called him a “gross and shameless monarchist.” They went further and called him “unfit to lead the country” below the headline “An Alarm'.[5] The Boston Chronicle suggested that if Adams had his way “the principle of hereditary succession would be imposed on America to make way for John Quincy.[6]
Adams for the most part remained silent on the attacks, but they did hurt him dearly. However, Adams did not respond to such accusations outright because he believed it was beneath his office to do so. Writing in the Colombian Centinel under the name “Publicola”, John Quincy came to the defense of his father. He took aim at Jefferson and his sponsored work The Rights of Men. John Quincy stated that essentially Jefferson had suggested that all who had a different political opinion from his own supported heresy. John Quincy could not comprehend how such a respectable man as Jefferson could make such a claim.[7] Jefferson did apologize to Adams, but their friendship would never be the same. Eventually, Adams came to understand his role as Vice President and was over time, largely forgotten and spared from the media’s attacks until his presidency.
What do you think of John Adams’ battles with the media? Let us know below.
[1]David McCullough, John Adams (New York: Simon and Schuster, 2001), 405.
[2]Ibid, 429.
[3]Ibid, 431.
[4]Ibid, 431.
[5]Ibid, 462.
[6]Ibid, 462.
[7]Ibid, 430
