[Josephus Daniels and Group] - Public domain portrait photograph

The beginning of the twentieth century was a period of dramatic change for women in the West. In the late Victorian period women were constricted by a patriarchal social structure. But the early twentieth century saw the creation of the Suffragette movement, the catalyst for the rapid social change that occurred over the rest of the century. With career options other than marriage and motherhood opening up to them, women engaged with politics, served in the two world wars, made an impact on the artistic and literary worlds and experienced social and sexual liberation. Between 1880 and 1910, the number of women employed in the United States increased from 2.6 million to 7.8 million. Women's organizations in towns and cities across the U.S. were working to promote suffrage, better schools, the regulation of child labor, women in unions, and liquor prohibition. By emphasizing traditional traits, female social reformers created new spaces for themselves in local and then national government even before they had the right to vote.

Josephus Daniels (May 18, 1862 – January 15, 1948) was an American newspaper editor and publisher. He controlled the Raleigh News and Observer, at the time North Carolina's largest newspaper, for decades. Daniels was a vehement white supremacist and segregationist. He believed that "the greatest folly and crime" in U.S. history was giving Negroes the vote. He and his newspaper "championed the white supremacy cause in frequent news reports, vigorously worded editorials, provocative letters, and vicious front-page cartoons that called attention to what the newspaper called the horrors of 'negro rule.'" Daniels argued that as long as African Americans had any political power, they would block progressive reforms. A Democrat, he was appointed by United States President Woodrow Wilson to serve as Secretary of the Navy during World War I. He became a close friend and supporter of Franklin D. Roosevelt, who served as his Assistant Secretary of the Navy and later was elected as United States President. As Secretary of the Navy, Daniels handled policy and formalities in World War I while his top aide, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, handled the major wartime decisions. In North Carolina in the early 20th century, he had been a leading progressive, supporting public schools and public works, and calling for more regulation of trusts and railroads. He supported prohibition and women's suffrage and used his newspapers to support the regular Democratic Party ticket. He was a powerful supporter of the Ku Klux Klan although never a member. The "white supremacy" campaign led to Democratic victories in 1898 and 1900. Having regained control of the state legislature, the Democrats passed a suffrage amendment raising barriers to voter registration, which affected most African Americans in the state. Later in life, Daniels admitted that the paper was occasionally excessive in its bias toward Democrats and that stories were not fully researched before publication and probably could not be 'sustained in a court of justice. After leaving government service in 1921, Daniels resumed the editorship of the Raleigh News and Observer. Daniels strongly supported Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt for president in 1932. The News and Observer remained under Daniels' family control until 1995. Josephus Daniels looked a lot like Kevin Spacey who played Frank Underwood, South Carolina Democrat in the House of Cards.