Comm455/History of Journalism

New York City in 1897 was the center of American journalism.  That center culminated namely between the two newspaper moguls, William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pulitzer. Hearst and Pulitzer were consumed in a  constant media war fueled by sensationalism and reflected in yellow journalism.  Current events fell subject as feeders to the tabloid war.  One […]

Long before America was declared an independent country, the first magazines were being published.  From these beginnings, they largely covered the following topics: commerce, politics, manners, society, and women. Why did magazines discuss women so much? Articles about women were largely published because in both the pre and post decades of revolutionary America, where were […]

For centuries, Latin was the dominant language in what was then known as “Christendom.”  It remained dominant for so long for three main reasons: 1) It was an international language for the elites. The elite and literate across Christendom could understand Latin in both its verbal and written forms.  This gave the language a feeling […]

In 1923 two young journalists, Henry R. Luce and Briton Hadden, came together under the goal of a magazine that could better deliver news to the mass public in a concise, informative manor.  Under this premise, Time Magazine was first published. Within 4 years of the original publication, Time secured a subscription list of over […]

Sensationalism has manifested in multiple forms of journalism over time.  In the 1830s, there were the penny papers.  In the 1880s and 1890s, it shown through in the yellow journals.  In the 1920s, tabloids became dominant in sensationalist use. Each of these forms of journalism utilized sensationalistic tactics to cater to and draw their audiences […]

Today, when someone says “I read The Times,” they could be referring to any number of publications: The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, The Seattle Times, The Daily times – the list goes on and on including titles within the US as well as many international titles.  However, “The Times” technically refers the […]

Magazines are publications that run on a regular schedule and are funded by subscription rates.  The first magazine ever printed was published in Germany in the late 17th century.  Less than 100 years later, with the idea of the magazine haven taken off as a form of journalism, a younger Ben Franklin decided to embrace […]

Yellow Journalism was born in the late nineteenth century out of the competition between publishing moguls Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst. Competition between the two came to a peak when Hearst hired the Cartoonist Richard F. Outcault away from Pulitzer after Outcault’s popular cartoon “Hogan’s Alley” boost Pulitzer’s sales.  Outcault’s most popular character from […]

When most Americans hear the word “tabloid” they automatically associate it with entertainment journalism and the ferocity of which we pounce on celebrity gossip. However, entertainment journalism is not what has fueled the history of the tabloid.  Tabloids originated in as a unique form of British journalism.  Utilizing sensationalism, British tabloids focus on breaking hard news […]

Since William Randolph Hearst named himself “Proprietor” of the San Francisco Examiner in 1887, the Hearst Company had held a long reputation as a publishing machine always in search of the next “big thing.” In 2014, the company has grown to be the home of over 300 magazine titles, with 21 of those in the US […]