Journalism

Chapter 1: History of American Media

Partisan press – early American newspapers that aligned themselves with a political party

Penny press – from mid-19th century, papers filled with news, read by a mass audience, including ads, and sold for a penny

Wire service – service providing, for a fee, news from around the world to publications subscribing to it. Ex. United Press (UP) & Associated Press (AP)

Yellow journalism – brand of journalism with hoaxes, altered photos, screaming headlines, frauds, & endless promotions of the newspapers themselves

Why?

to boost circulation

Modern examples?

Muckraking - journalism (particularly magazines) that crusades for social justice or to expose wrongdoingEx. Status of blacks, child labor, patent

medicine companies, meat-packing ind.Ex. McClure’s attacked big business

Global village – concept (of Marshall McFuban) that the world has become a more tightly interrelated community because of simultaneous broadcasting

“shock jocks” – radio disk jockeys who entertain by saying outrageous, often vulgar or offensive, things about people or situations

Ex. Howard Stern

Computer-assisted reporting (CAR) – databases, crime logs, internet, bulletin boards, listservs, etc.

1st published newspaper: Publick Occurrences, Boston, 1690, Benjamin Harris

What happened to it?not approved by British authority; only one publication

1st continuously published newspaper?Boston News-Letter, John Campbell,

1704Had government’s approval (very

closely supervised)

John Peter Zenger?

published NY Weekly Journal which acted as a voice giving rise to Whigs and printed articles criticizing Gov. Wm. Gosby

charged with seditious libel

(stirring up rebellion)

(damaging false statements)

1st daily newspaper: Pennsylvania Evening Post, 1783

Early newspaper stories: little actual news; essays, editorials, ads (opinion pieces)

Civil War caused stories to be short (inverted pyramid style) – telegraphs (wire service) aided transport of info

1st radio newscast: Wilson-Hughes presidential election results

3 major TV networks?

NBC, CBS, ABC by 1945

1st war covered by TV?

Vietnam

“Breaking story events”?

NO!!!

background info, possible causes, in- depth, trends, lifestyles, etc.