The 1950's saw the birth of rock and roll and the explosion of television sitcoms. The decade was also marked by the influx of African-American athletes into the sporting world following Jackie Robinson's debut for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. However, one would not realize the significance of African-Americans in athletics by reading sports pages during the 1950's. The athletic achievements of African-Americans were often doomed to the latter pages of sports sections in favor of advertisements and routine sports articles. The San Francisco Chronicle is guilty of hiding the impact of African-Americans in sports, reflecting a lack of racial tolerance.

It can be said that newspapers are a reflection of the society that they represent. If one were to look at the San Francisco Chronicle sports page in 1955, a message of racial intolerance would surely be present. September 1, 1955 surely is no exception. The front...