Lincoln Steffens

**Lincoln Steffens** is a reporter interested in Commissioner Theodore Roosevelt's policy in reforming the New York City Police Department.

He's a guest character in ‘The Alienist’ portrayed by Jefferson White.

## Character Overview

An average looking, blond man in his thirties. Steffens is of medium height, with a slim body, and with a thick mustache. Lincoln Steffens is a muckraking journalist always on the front line. Because he's more often than not in contact with politicians and businessmen, his suits are clean and tidy, unlike other journalists clothes that could be crumpled or stained with ink. Steffens is a socialist sympathizer and has taken up the fight against corruption in American society. His interest, however, is not only to expose corruption but also to put people before the facts so that they can acknowledge their part in it and do something for the better. Lincoln Steffens is an intrepid reporter who is not afraid to ask uncomfortable questions or accepts to be silenced by bribes. He is also a spokesperson for the problems of the poorest neighborhoods such as malnutrition, hard labor, criminal gangs, prostitution, and immigration.

## Biography

New York City, March 4th, 1896.  Following the murder of Giorgio Santorelli and the subsequent arrest of Henry Wolff as a suspect, Steffens went to the New York City Police Department for information. Once on the premises of the police station, he asked Captain Connor for detail. The policeman said they had obtained a confession from the criminal — implying they have beaten him for it — and that now he was convicted at Bellevue Hospital. Steffens took note and then asked the former Chief police Thomas Byrnes if he agreed with the current policy of the newly appointed chief of police, Theodore Roosevelt. Byrnes merely replied that they could offer a rope to Roosevelt and see how long it would take to hang himself. But the attention of Steffens and the other journalists shifted to the man who had just come down from a carriage: Dr. Laszlo Kreizler, the well-known alienist.

When a murder was carried out on the roof of Castle Garden, Steffens was in the crowd of curious and indignant on the premises. The journalist made inquisitive questions to Commissioner Roosevelt, who tried to elude assumptions and accusations made by journalists. Shortly after, with the arrival of former Chief Police Thomas Byrnes and Captain Connor, an indignant crowd of citizens also arrived and Steffens had to step aside in order not to be lynched by the mob that the police tried to calm down.

Following further unsolved murders and the potential trail linking the murders of the young prostitutes from the slums to a member of high society, Steffens kept the police department in sight. Smoking at the window and spotting the road, Steffens warned his colleagues of Roosevelt's arrival. Outside the police station, Steffens tried to get the exclusivity on the latest rumors about the investigation, but Roosevelt ignored the journalists, headed to his office annoyed by their insinuation and hindering of the investigation.

Following the umpteenth murder — a prostitute boy found at the foot of the Statue of Liberty — and the apparent inability of the police to stop or at least identify the murderer, spurred an angry mob that gathered outside the Police Department. As usual, Steffens was on the front line to gather information for his articles, but he was forced to step aside, again, when the police started beating up protesters.

## Memorable Quotes

**Steffens** "*Can you tell us what's going on up there, commissioner? Word has it, it's another boy's been killed.*"
— Silver Smile

**Steffens:** "*Mr. Roosevelt! Have you anything to say about the fact the dead boys were all immigrants?*
**Steffens:** "*Commissioner, can you be trusted to protect the poor, or just the elite? Is it true the dead boy was dressed as a girl? This is the second one, isn't it, sir?*"
— These Bloody Thoughts

## Appearances

* Ep. 3: *Silver Smile*
* Ep. 7: *Many Sainted Men*

## Notes

* He's an in-universe depiction of Lincoln Joseph Steffens (April 6, 1866 – August 9, 1936), a New York reporter who launched a series of articles in McClure's, called *Tweed Days in St. Louis*, that would later be published together in a book titled *The Shame of the Cities* . He is remembered for investigating corruption in municipal government in American cities and for his early support for the Soviet Union.

## Gallery

* Screencaps
* Behind the Scenes

## References

1. ↑  Journalists gathered outside the NYPD the day after Giorgio Santorelli's murder, revealed to have happened on March 3rd, 1896 in *Hildebrandt’s Starling*.
2. ↑  Hossein Amini (writer) & Jakob Verbruggen (director); (January 22, 2018); "The Boy on the Bridge". Episode 1. *The Alienist*. TNT
3. ↑ Gina Gionfriddo (writer) & Jakob Verbruggen (director); (February 5, 2018); "Silver Smile". Episode 3.*The Alienist*. TNT
4. ↑ Gina Gionfriddo & Cary Joji Fukunaga (writers) & James Hawes (director); (February 12, 2018); "These Bloody Thoughts". Episode 4.*The Alienist*. TNT
5. ↑  John Sayles (writer) & Paco Cabezas (director); (March 5, 2018); "Many Sainted Men". Episode 7.*The Alienist*. TNT