The Splendid Little War

The Splendid Little War, better known as the Spanish-American War of 1898, is
significant for launching the United States onto its path as a world power. The war began as an
effort to aid the Cubans in their struggle for independence against Spain. But when it was over,
the United States found itself in possession of a small overseas empire that included the
Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico. Cuba retained its independence, but the Platt Amendment to
the new Cuban constitution gave the United States the right to intervene militarily at any time.
The United States also maintained a permanent lease on naval stations in Cuba, including
Guantanamo Bay.
The United States entered the conflict mainly because of an independence movement that
started in Cuba in 1895. When it became apparent that the Spanish military commander,
Valeriano Weyler, was imprisoning hundreds of thousands of Cuban civilians in camps, the
United States could identify and sympathize with these Cubans in their desire for freedom and
independence. Business and government leaders in the United States were also concerned with
protecting sugar plantations in Cuba that generated $30 million dollars a year in revenue for the
American economy. Some Cuban rebels set fire to sugar plantations hoping to pressure the
United States to intervene.
As President William McKinley monitored the situation, he tried to pressure Spain to grant
Cuban independence. Spain refused. Then, in February 1898 two events led McKinley to change
his mind and approve war. William Randolph Hearsts New York Journal published a translation
of a letter written by the Spanish minister to the U.S., Enrique Dupuy de Lome, criticizing
McKinley as weak and telling the United States to stay out of Cuba. McKinley demanded and
received an apology from Spain. But on February 15th, the U.S. battleship Maine exploded and
sank in Havana harbor, killing 266 crewmembers. After a U.S. Navy investigation declared that
the Maine was destroyed by a submerged mine, public and Congressional pressure reached a
point that McKinley asked for and received from Congress authority to intervene in Cuba. On
April 23rd, Spain declared war on the United States, and the U.S. reciprocated two days later.
One of the key factors leading the United States to war was the role of the media. In
covering the events, two newspapers in particular, Joseph Pulitzers New York World and
William Randolph Hearsts New York Journal used a style of reporting dubbed yellow
journalism that featured exaggeration, distorted details and sensationalized headlines. The
phrase yellow journalism came from a popular comic in the New York World, Hogans Alley
that featured a character called the yellow kid. With no evidence or proof of a guilty party,
much of the American press especially the New York World and the New York Herald
immediately blamed the Spanish for this attack.
Using exaggeration and distorted details in their yellow journalism style of writing, they
called for President McKinley to declare war on Spain. The press continued to ignite the growing
spirit of jingoism in the United States, and with the help of the media President McKinley had
the support of the American people behind him to ask Congress for a declaration of war. The
question at the time, however, was who was responsible for the destruction of the U.S.S. Maine.
There was no visual proof or evidence linking anyone to the responsibility of the sinking of this
ship. Was Spain responsible and blew up the ship as a way to start a war with America? Was it
the Cuban rebels further enticing us into a war with Spain? Was it an accident by American
sailors? Was it a conspiracy by the American press in an attempt to lure the U.S. into a war with
Spain in order to sell more papers? Ultimately it was determined that an internal explosion sent
the Maine to the bottom of the harbor, yet the sinking of the Maine remains an important catalyst
that drove the U.S. to war with Spain and fueled the flames of imperialism.