In your opinion, would they have been what we consider "mainstream media" today?
Regarding JFK, WHY did the MSM give him a pass? Daddy Joe had some "interesting" friends in hight places. Were the media types a little cowed by his possible retribution if they didn't treat son properly? Other possibilities?
From that point on, part of the media's leftward/activist turn was an attempt to "reclaim their virginity."
Could be, but they were "kissed" by Dims, so why would they take it out on Pubbies later??? Doesn't wash IMHO, but trying to decipher the MSM's proclivities is something I've spent a lot of time on, without satisfactory results. I'm hoping your efforts will shed some light on what to me is the most vexing questions; that is, how and why.
FGS
WHY they gave JFK a pass is more difficult to determine, and requires not only research but a lot of speculation. Based on what I've found, it has to do with "projection." The mostly-male reporters wanted to BE JFK, and projected themselves into his libertinism, his wealth, and his power. He was, after all, the epitome of a good liberal: he didn't have to play by the rules that he made everyone else play by. I go into a lot of this in the book, so it's not a quick argument; but JFK was a "journalist," in that he had done some war reporting, so he was "one of them" in yet another way. Further, "Camelot" provided them with the Washington social scene that they loved. He also made important changes in how he handled the press that I discuss.