Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Sensationalism \Sen*sa"tion*al*ism\, n.
   1. (Metaph.) The doctrine held by Condillac, and by some
      ascribed to Locke, that our ideas originate solely in
      sensation, and consist of sensations transformed;
      sensualism; -- opposed to {intuitionalism}, and
      {rationalism}.

   2. The practice or methods of sensational writing or
      speaking; as, the sensationalism of a novel.

Source : WordNet®

sensationalism
     n 1: subject matter that is calculated to excite and please
          vulgar tastes
     2: the journalistic use of subject matter that appeals to
        vulgar tastes; "the tabloids relied on sensationalism to
        maintain their circulation" [syn: {luridness}]
     3: (philosophy) the ethical doctrine that feeling is the only
        criterion for what is good [syn: {sensualism}]
     4: (philosophy) the doctrine that knowledge derives from
        experience [syn: {empiricism}, {empiricist philosophy}]