William Randolph Hearst’s Politics | Citizen Hearst | American Experience | PBS

Summary

This transcript traces William Randolph Hearst's shift from supporting FDR to vehemently opposing the New Deal, which he and the business community initially tolerated out of fear of revolution. While working-class Americans embraced Roosevelt's programs, Hearst, a wealthy capitalist who once championed the "average American," ultimately prioritized his own class interests and could not ideologically accept policies that helped millions, leading him to deride the New Deal and the President.