The American public was already hostile against Spain due to tense relations between the U.S. and Spain. American newspapers fed greatly from the fight for independence in Cuba, producing dozens of sensationalist headlines.
Historians highlight the importance of yellow journalism at this moment: disputes between William Randolph Hearst's New York Journal
and Joseph Pulitzer's New York World were often played through Cuba's fight for independence stories.
When the USS Maine exploded, despite the uncertainty around the causes of it, it was instantaneously used as propaganda against the Spanish. The American attitude toward the Spanish became even more hostile than before once Americans felt directly attacked, and yellow journalism encouraged such feelings repeatedly with slogans like "Remember the Maine".
However, it's important to remember the explosion of the USS Maine was probably not much more than an excuse for the U.S. intervention in Cuban affairs. You can read more about it in the answer to this question: https://brainly.com/question/14136769
