muckrakers

noun

plural of muckraker
as in journalists
someone who tries to reveal information about prominent individuals behaving badly The newspaper used a team of seasoned muckrakers to expose the corruption at city hall.

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of muckrakers Several anti-Flock websites and muckrakers used open records laws to collect and publish hundreds of police agencies’ audit logs – internal records detailing each time an officer searched Flock for a specific tag. — Kenny Jacoby, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026 Famous American muckrakers include Ida Tarbell who wrote about Standard Oil’s monopoly; Lincoln Steffens who wrote about corruption in city halls; and Upton Sinclair who exposed deplorable conditions in the meatpacking industry. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 21 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for muckrakers
  1. journalists
  2. reporters
Noun
  • Breaking through this boredom — especially when hosting influencers and journalists who have so often been there and done that — is perhaps easier said than done.
    — Noor Lobad, Footwear News, 9 Oct. 2026
  • In the last several weeks, multiple journalists have been hearing that cuts could be in the 5 percent range, or more, at the company.
    — Erik Hayden, HollywoodReporter, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of journalists
Noun
  • The Athletic, which eliminated its Sox beat writer position a few years ago, had three reporters at Game 3.
    — Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 9 Oct. 2026
  • At the time, Bragg publicly claimed, in his own defense, that Times journalists often leaned on uncredited reporters.
    — Charles Bethea, New Yorker, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of reporters

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Cite this Entry

“Muckrakers.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/muckrakers. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

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