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Professional journalism is a form of news reporting which developed in the United States at the beginning of the 20th century, along with formal schools of journalism which arose at major universities. As documented by Robert McChesney, "[n]one of these schools existed in 1900; by 1915, all the major schools such as Columbia, Northwestern, Missouri, and Indiana were in full swing."
According to McChesney, professional journalism arose in the response to the capitalist imperative of consolidation. As the many independent newspapers which existed at the turn of the century, often with a radical agenda and with no presumption of balance or objectivity, were acquired and consolidated, the large resulting newspapers understood they needed to appear balanced and objective to their audience and advertisers. Thus, professional codes developed, as well as the academic programs to fill these positions.
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