Which muckraker is famous for exposing the practices of the Standard Oil Company?

• A. Ida Tarbell
• B. Upton Sinclair
• C. Jacob Riis
• D. Lincoln Steffens

Answer: (A)

The main idea here is identifying who exposed the monopolistic practices of big trusts. Ida Tarbell is the journalist famous for revealing Standard Oil’s methods. She conducted a detailed, painstaking investigation and published a series of articles in McClure’s Magazine, later compiling them into a book, that showed how John D. Rockefeller’s company used rebates, price discrimination, and other aggressive tactics to crush rivals and control the oil industry. Her work helped shape public opinion and fed momentum for antitrust action, contributing to the eventual breakup of Standard Oil in 1911 under the Sherman Antitrust Act. The other writers focused on different abuses: Upton Sinclair exposed meatpacking conditions; Jacob Riis documented urban poverty; Lincoln Steffens exposed city political corruption. Tarbell’s focus on corporate monopoly is why she’s the best fit for this question.