1. Bengali Journalism

2. Why Calcutta?
Calcutta was the headquarter of the East India Company as well as the capital of British India.
Distinct identity for Bengali journalism - birthplace of journalism in India.
Activities of Christian missionaries prompted many people to launch papers to defend Hindu religion and customs.

3. Also, reformers like Raja Rammohun Roy started newspapers to propagate their causes.

4. Introduction
Record of facing the worst repression and persecution at the hands of the rulers.
Bengali newspapers - sentinels of Indian nationalism.
Fought hard against racial discrimination, injustice and maladministration.
Terror to the British administration.
Most drastic press laws particularly aimed at them.

5. Early times
Between , many Bengali newspapers introduced but most were short lived.
Early newspapers include Shome Prakash, Grambartha Prakashika
Reported on the exploitation of labour in plantations fields.
Held massive campaigns to expose the Govt.’s abuse, mistreatment.

6. Technology
The Press was still in its crudest form.
Shoddy printing + poor layout.
1818, first Bengali newspapers came up - Dig Darshan and Samachar Darpan.
Both were missionary journals.
Samachar Darpan - Started by missionaries (Carey and Marshman) at Srerampore.

7. The beginnings
Began as a monthly, but owing to its popularity, soon became a weekly.
It carried both national as well as international news.
District news, apart from missionary messages.
Had official support.
Became a bilingual paper in Bengali + English.
Survived a few crises, but finally closed down in 1852.

8. Forerunner of Bengali Journalism - appointed 60 correspondents in all major towns of Bengal to cover all social and non-political news.
Governor Warren Hastings gave postal concessions - one fourth of normal charges.
His successor, Lord Amherst subscribed to 100 copies which he distributed among officials. Made Indians aware of the possibility of running a newspaper in Bengali.

9. Led to reformers starting newspapers to counter the missionary propaganda and to defend their faith.
1st Bengali newspaper which counteracted the missionary run newspapers - Bengal Gazette.
Started by teacher-reformist Ganga Kishore Bhattacharya.
Associated with Raja Rammohun Roy.
Campaigned intensively for social reforms.

10. This paper was the first to publish Roy’s views on the necessity of abolishing Sati.
The paper, however, could not sustain long.
Roy campaigned against child marriage, sati, idol worship.
Roy’s Sambad Kaumudi started in 1821, did not last long.
Ishwar Chandra Gupta started the Bengali daily- Sambad Prabhakar. Found it to be a daunting task.

11. Followed by Tathwa Bodhini – Akshay Kumar Dutta, 1843.
Others - Masik Patra, Som Prakash, Vividharta Sangrah.
Between , 19 regular newspapers in Bengali.
Had a circulation of roughly 8,100 copies.
The Bengali press actively lobbied for a bill (got introduced later) - Widow Remarriage Bill, 1856.

12. Bengali Press suffered most after the 1857 Mutiny.
Action was taken under the new Press Act against Bengali weekly Durbeen.
In 1876, half the no. of total language newspapers in India were published from Calcutta.
Total no. was - 38, 19 were from published from Calcutta.

13. The torchbearers Dwarkanath Tagore
Started Bengal Herald, English weekly and Bangadoot – Bengali
Also gave financial assistance to a number of newspapers .
1853, Girish Chandra Ghosh started Hindu Patriot.
Harishchandra Mukherjee took over after 2 years.
After his death, it was run by social reformer Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar

14. Edited by - Krsitodas Pal, well known entity.
1861, Manmohan Ghosh started Indian Mirror.
Keshub Chandra Sen converted it into a daily in 1871.
1870, Keshub Chandra Sen (of the Indian Reform Association) started Sulava Samachar.
It was a weekly, sold at one paisa per copy.

15. Successful Bengali Newspapers
Most popular weekly of that period.
Had a circulation of 4000 copies, considered phenomenal for those times.
Another popular newspaper - Haishakar Patrika (Halishahar Patrika)
Edited by - Babu Mohan Ganguli.
Bengal Hurkaru – championed the cause of of abolition of capital punishment, had its license revoked later.

16. The first newspaper to espouse the cause of the working class - Bharat Shramajili, a weekly.
Literary newspaper – Bangadarshan.
Very popular, specially with the educated Bengali class.
First Bengali daily to adopt modern methods of production – Basumati.
Editor - Krishna Kamal Bhattacharya

17. Bengalee Surendarnath Bannerjee’s – Bengalee Became a daily in 1900.
First language newspaper to subscribe to Reuter’s foreign news service.

18. When the Vernacular Press Act was in place, Amrita Bazaar Patrika converted itself from a Bengali weekly to an English weekly to escape the draconian provisions of the Act.
B.C Pal and Aurobindo Ghosh started Bande Mataram.

19. Partition of Bengal
1905, Lord Curzon, Viceroy, announced partition of Bengal.
Country wide agitation, Press opposed the move strongly.
Many newspapers came up.
Papers reported that hundreds of meetings were held to protest the Partition, pledges were taken to boycott British goods.
The press criticized the “extreme measures” adopted by the Govt.

20. Yuganter
Four papers during this period known for their revolutionary fervour - Sandhya, Nagshakti, Bande Mataram and Yugantar
Sandhya – Edited by Brahma Upadhyaya.
Bande Mataram - Aurobindo Ghosh.
Many Editors were persecuted for their editorials.
Aurobindo Ghosh - subjected to solitary confinement.
Bande Mataram - closed down during his absence.

21. Yuganter - founded in 1906 - achieved great popularity.
Editor - Aurobindo Ghosh’s brother .
Its mission - to preach revolution as a religion, not just a political movement.
Main principles - righteousness and knowledge.

22. Yuganter Provided impetus to the freedom movement.
Editor - imprisoned, during trial exhibited what the judge remarked as, “a burning hatred for the British race”.
Provided an agenda for getting independence:
First, the educated classes must learn to hate slavery.
Aspiration for freedom must be converted into a firm resolve.
Sacrifice for the cause of freedom must be accepted.

23. Public Opinion must be built by newspapers which must be filled with discussion of the necessity of independence and revolution.
Secretly and silently, bands of young men must be organized.
Bombs should be manufactured in secret places.
Guns imported from foreign countries.
The law of English is established through brute force and to liberate ourselves, we too must use brute force.

24. The newspaper had unprecedented sale.
The spirit it sought to arouse in people – succeeded.
Most well known Editor - Vivekananda Mukherjee.
Indian Newspapers Bill in 1908 suppressed Yuganter which left an indelible mark in Indian Press history.

25. Bengali Press at that time - agitating for Lord Curzon’s recall.
Questioned credibility of Bengali press and stated that only a small minority are educated to read.
Another pioneering paper , Basumati.
Owned by Hemendra Prasad Ghosh.

26. Ananda Bazar Patrika 1922 - Ananda Bazar Patrika
Sponsored by Mrinal Kanti Ghosh, Prafulla Kumar Sarkar and Suresh Chandra Majumdar.
Played a glorious part in freedom struggle.
Largest circulating Bengali daily in the country.
Most well known Edior - Chapala Kanta Bhattacharya.

27. After Gandhi’s arrival, the Bengalee and Nayak, both newspapers from the Moderate camp lost ground rapidly.
Often attacked the Moderates for lack of courage and timidity in demanding what was the ‘birthright of Indians’
The Bengali Press suffered after partition in lost a good number of readers in East Pakistan.