Not only was the Hetch Hetchy controversy one of water and preservation, but it became mired in the political issues of the day. This issue spanned at least three presidents before finally being passed in Congress on December 7, 1913. In addition, this controversy exemplified the political and cultural landscape of the end of the Gilded Age and the midst of the Progressive Era in the United States. With large conglomerates such as William Randolph Hearst controlling much of the media in the San Francisco area, as well as newspapers in other parts of the country, he helped shape the outcome of the passing of the Raker Act in Congress, allowing the dam to be built. Other prime examples of the progressive era included political scandal and controversy, especially prevalent in the Taft administration with the Great Alaskan Land Fraud and the Pinchot-Ballinger Controversy, which led to both Richard A. Ballinger and Gifford Pinchot to resign and be fired respectively. With these openings, this led to the eventual success of the land permit to be granted by Congress and the new president, Woodrow Wilson in 1913.