1. 6 Newspapers Reflection of a Democratic Society

2. Inventing the Modern Press Martin Luther and John Calvin:  published newspaper-like broadsheets in the 1500s Newspapers first appeared in England in the 1620s. Publick Occurrence:  first newspaper in the American colonies (1690) Boston News Letter:  first to publish multiple issues (1704)

3. Benjamin and James Franklin James started the New England Courant in 1721:  first newspaper published without approval of the British government 16-year-old Benjamin takes over after James is jailed. Benjamin Franklin purchased the Pennsylvania Gazette in 1729:  featured first political cartoon  introduced the weather report as a regular feature

4. The Penny Press: Newspapers for the People Before 1830s, papers contained shipping news and political essays.  designed primarily for the wealthy elite  underwritten by political parties  expensive, as much as 6 cents a day Average worker might make 85 cents a day  available only by annual subscription, paid in advance

5. Penny Press (cont.) September 3, 1833—Benjamin Day begins publishing the New York Sun:  paper’s motto was “It shines for all”  inexpensive, sold for a penny or two on the street derived the name penny press  profits came primarily from advertising revenue  invented the concept of “news”

6. A Modern Democratic Society Increase in number of papers in just a decade:  In 1830—650 weeklies and 65 dailies in the United States  In 1840—1,241 weeklies and 138 dailies Changes wrought by industrial revolution:  Shift from rural to urban, agricultural to industrial society  People working for wages, purchasing consumer goods Penny press—provided means for advertising these goods

7. Pulitzer, Hearst, and the Battle for New York City Joseph Pulitzer came to the United States from Austria in 1864 to fight in U.S. Civil War  in 1878, bought the St. Louis Post and Dispatch  in 1883, bought the failing New York World boosted circulation from 15,000 to more than 250,000 in 3 years  credited with shaping the modern front page featured prominent stories “above the fold”  reached out to women and immigrant readers  established Pulitzer Prize

8. William Randolph Hearst  began career as editor of the San Francisco Examiner  purchased the New York Journal  used ideas developed by Pulitzer in his paper  fierce battle between Pulitzer and Hearst  Yellow journalism—shocking, sensationalistic reporting derived from the Pulitzer-Hearst rivalry name derived from popular “Yellow Kid” comic featured in both Pulitzer’s and Hearst’s papers.

9. The Newspaper Business Newspaper Conglomerates  1,500 daily newspapers down 25 percent from 100 years ago  Chains—corporations that control a significant number of newspapers or other media outlets  Before World War II—80 percent of newspapers were owned independently  Today—80 percent owned by chains

10. Gannett:  chain with the largest circulation (USA Today)  owns more than 90 daily newspapers  combined circulation of approximately 7.3 million  goals as high as 30 to 40 percent profit

11. National Newspapers USA Today (1982):  “McPaper” serving up “News McNuggets”  lost more than $800 million in first decade  is found everywhere  changed the look of newspapers industry-wide  forced the industry to reconsider news priorities  2.3 million daily circulation

12. The Wall Street Journal:  retains old-fashioned look  last major paper to start using color  uses pen-and-ink drawings over photos  the definitive source of financial news  heavy national and international news coverage  daily circulation of 2 million

13. The Christian Science Monitor (1908):  owned by the Christian Science church  started by Mary Baker Eddy  started in response to yellow journalism  “appeal to the literate, concerned and moral citizen”  cover serious issues, especially international stories  downplays news about medicine and health  72,000 daily circulation

14. English-Language International Newspapers International Herald Tribune (1887):  published in Paris, distributed in 180 countries Financial Times:  owned by Pearson companies  primarily a business newspaper The Wall Street Journal:  publishes European and Asian editions

15. The Metropolitan Press The New York Times:  most influential newspaper in United States  1.1 million daily subscribers one third of them live outside of New York City  bought by Adolf Ochs in 1896  nicknamed “Gray Lady”  on October 16, 1997, used color photos on front page

16. The Metropolitan Paper (cont.) The Washington Post:  Watergate created a national reputation reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein and editor Bill Bradlee  reputation tarnished by Janet Cooke published fictitious news story about eight-year-old heroin addict, Jimmy scandal still hangs over the paper

17. The Metropolitan Paper (cont.) The Los Angeles Times:  gaining national reputation as solid paper  mainstreaming—quoting nonwhite and nonmale sources in stories that aren’t about minority issues can cause confusion with reporters policy established to reach out to minority readers

18. The Tabloids Tabloid newspapers:  feature 11x14 inch format  usually have a cover rather than a front page Broadsheet newspapers:  feature standard 17 by 22 format Examples of Tabloids:  The New York Daily News: big photos, huge headlines, sensationalistic stories January 13, 1928 cover featuring Ruth Snyder’s execution  The Denver Rocky Mountain News: covered Columbine school shooting extensively

19. Community and Suburban Papers Community press—weekly and daily newspapers serving individual communities or suburbs  rely on Web presence  1,100 daily, 1,200 nondaily community papers in United States  loyal readers  stories not being covered nationally

20. News and Society News characteristics:  timeliness  proximity  prominence  consequence  rarity  human interest

21. News and Society (cont.) Sources, advertisers and readers:  editors increasingly looking to appeal to advertisers  surrounding news stories with similar ads Patriotism and the press  2006—92 journalists have died in Iraq since March 2003 2006 alone—32 killed in Iraq, 23 internationally  targets: deliberately murdered (Daniel Pearl)

22. The Alternative Press Alternative papers—serve specialized audiences: Freedom’s Journal (1827):  “Black citizens were humans who were being treated unjustly” North Star (1847):  Frederick Douglass, editor  pushed for end of slavery, black rights Chicago Defender (1905):  profit as well as advocacy  urged southern blacks to move north

23. The Gay Press:  The Washington Blade (1969) promotes gay causes, highlights problems  Gay City News (New York City) purchased by a straight-owned company in 2002 targeted a gay audience for profit, no longer for only the promotion of gay culture Underground Papers:  attract young people  being bought up by chains

24. The Future of Newspapers Are newspapers a dying medium?  major urban papers: losing circulation, staff cutbacks  afternoon papers first casualty historically  Falling circulation figures: in 2005, circulation fell 2.6 percent for dailies it fell 3.1 percent for Sunday papers  convenience factor still strong

25. The future of newspapers (cont.) Newspapers and the Web:  breaking news—news story that requires frequent updating Web allows for easy updating  Breaking news online role of Dallas Morning News Oklahoma City Bombing, Clinton-Lewinsky stories broke online first advantages/problems of online publishing

26. The future of newspapers (cont.) What the Web offers newspapers:  good at presenting interactive features on breaking news  Pew Research Center for the People and the Press: roughly 30 percent of people use Internet for news on a regular basis more turn to network sites rather than paper sites  Importance of new technologies and formats: podcasts PDA-designed versions blogs