Lincoln's Lie: A True Civil War Caper Through Fake News, Wall Street, and the White House

Mitchell, Elizabeth

ISBN 10: 1640095365 / ISBN 13: 9781640095366

Published by Counterpoint LLC (edition ), 2022

About this Item

It's a preowned item in good condition and includes all the pages. It may have some general signs of wear and tear, such as markings, highlighting, slight damage to the cover, minimal wear to the binding, etc., but they will not affect the overall reading experience.

Seller Inventory # 1640095365-11-1

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Lincoln's Lie: A True Civil War Caper Through Fake News, Wall Street, and the White House
• Publisher: Counterpoint LLC (edition )
• Publication Date: 2022
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1640095365
• ISBN 13: 9781640095366
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: Good

About this title

Synopsis

This "delicious, suspenseful . . . and cleverly written romp through a dramatic and forgotten moment in American history" reveals how Lincoln manipulated the media during the Civil War--shining new light on the current 'fake news' crisis (Elizabeth Gilbert)

In 1864, during the bloodiest days of the Civil War, two newspapers published a call, allegedly authored by President Lincoln, for the immediate conscription of 400,000 more Union soldiers. New York streets erupted in pandemonium. Wall Street markets went wild.

When Lincoln sent troops to seize the newspaper presses and arrest the editors, it became clear: The proclamation was a lie. Who put out this fake news? Was it a Confederate spy hoping to incite another draft riot? A political enemy out to ruin the president in an election year? Or was there some truth to the proclamation--far more truth than anyone suspected?

Unpacking this overlooked historical mystery for the first time, journalist Elizabeth Mitchell takes readers on a dramatic journey from newspaper offices filled with heroes and charlatans to the haunted White House confinement of Mary Todd Lincoln, from the packed pews of the celebrated preacher Reverend Henry Ward Beecher's Plymouth Church to the War Department offices in the nation's capital and a Grand Jury trial.

In Lincoln's Lie, Mitchell brings to life the remarkable story of the manipulators of the news and why they decided to play such a dangerous game during a critical period of American history. Her account of Lincoln's troubled relationship to the press and its role in the Civil War is one that speaks powerfully to our current political crises: fake news, profiteering, Constitutional conflict, and a president at war with the press.

About the Author

Elizabeth Mitchell has authored nonfiction books, covering politics, sports and history, including her most recent acclaimed saga, Liberty’s Torch: The Great Adventure to Build the Statue of Liberty. Her novella–length work, The Fearless Mrs. Goodwin, was a nonfiction bestseller. Formerly the executive editor of George, the nation’s largest political magazine, she has worked as an investigative reporter and features writer. She makes her home in Brooklyn, New York.