Because of his penchant for biting social criticism and satire , Bierce 's long newspaper career was often steeped in controversy . On several occasions his columns stirred up a storm of hostile reaction , which created difficulties for Hearst . One of the most notable of these incidents occurred following the assassination of President William McKinley , when Hearst 's opponents turned a poem Bierce had written about the assassination of Governor William Goebel of Kentucky in 1900 into a '' cause célèbre ''
assassination
Assassination of William McKinley
Ambrose Bierce