Emigrating to the United States in the late 1840s, he worked as a journalist in Missouri and held a number of important positions in the Republican Party.

[2] Bernays became a journalist for the Deutsch–Französische Jahrbücher (German–French Annals), which was published in Paris by Karl Marx and Arnold Ruge.

[2] On his release, he took refuge with fellow journalist Henry Boernstein, whose foster daughter Josephine 'Pepi' Wolf he later married.

[2][1] Bernays apparently did not enjoy these postings (there were protests over his Jewish background) and returned to the United States to resume work as a journalist.

[2] During the Civil War, he served as an army paymaster, with the rank of lieutenant colonel.