The Second Industrial Revolution brought many changes in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Although there was much prosperity, it was unequally distributed among the lower, middle, and upper classes. Although inequality was evident, the national government deliberately chose to adopt a laissez-faire stance, thus allowing big business to prosper, but at the expense of the population. Free to do as they pleased, companies engaged in unfair and unethical business practices not only against competitors but also against employees and consumers. To combat this oppressive state, Americans, concerned about the well-being of the people, spoke openly about these problems and encouraged reforms by raising awareness through their writings. These people were known as "muckrakers", a term coined by President Theodore Roosevelt. They "raked" the "mud" to expose society and corruption. Some even called these muckrakers David, in reference to the biblical story of David and Goliath, who took down the Goliaths (or corruptions) of society. Since society (then) revered muckrakers as great heroes, it was easy to ignore the flaws of muckrakers. However, it is important to analyze muckrakers from a more critical and celebratory perspective, in order to gain a more accurate understanding of their consequential impact. In the early 20th century, Ida Tarbell's attack on Standard Oil was seen as a great achievement, but the attack itself is questionable due to Tarbell's biases and accuracy. Ida M. Tarbell, "Lady Muckraker", was one of the greatest muckrakers of the early 20th century. Born in 1857, she lived her childhood in a city experiencing an oil boom. His father, Franklin Tarbell, made his fortune in oil. Tarbell knew and understood......half the paper......of the Progressive Era. Works Cited Olien, Diana Davids, and Roger M. Olien. “Why is oil bad?” Organization of AmericanHistorians (OAH) Magazine of History 11, no 1(1996):22-27, http://www.jstor.org/stable/25163113.Randolph, Josephine D. "A Notable Pennsylvanian: Ida Minerva Tarbell, 1857 -1944,” Pennsylvania History 66, no. 2(1999):215-241. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27774189. Reed, Lawrence W. “How a Food Safety Myth Became a Legend.” Consumers'Research Magazine, February 1995. http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/.Regier, Cornelius C. The Age of the Muckrakers. The University of North Carolina Press, 1932.Streitmatter, Rodger. More powerful than the Sword. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1997. Young, James Harvey. “Food and Drug Regulations under the USDA, 1906-1940,” Agricultural History Society 64, no. 2 (1990): 134-142. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3743803