Notes on the History of Newspapers: From Acta Diurna to the Penny Press

Acta Diurna and ancient roots of news

Oldest known public news accounts: Acta Diurna (Latin for daily events).
Developed by Julius Caesar himself; not a ‘newspaper’ as we know it, but a public posting of events in public spaces around Rome.
Rough timeline: around 59\text{ BC} (not exact, but widely accepted).
Focus of early news: reports from neighboring cities, villages, and local tribes; not typically about events inside Rome.
Implication: early forms of news as public commentary, with the potential to provoke dissatisfaction with government and even uprisings centuries later.

Early European newspapers and licensing

With printing, demand for newspapers grew; early publications were sporadic, not daily or regular.
1556: first monthly newspaper in Europe, Notizi Scripti, published in Venice.
Notizi Scripti marks a move toward regularized news reporting, even under absolute rulers who sought to control information.
Alternative shipping/mer mercantile-focused papers existed in The Netherlands, including Krantos, which prioritized goods and trade information over broad political content.
1605: first printed weekly newspaper, the Relation, in the Netherlands (Kranten lineage).
1645: oldest newspaper still in existence dates to this period in Sweden, named as: "The post Oxnrix Tigendarm" (as stated in the lecture; pronunciation and spelling are likely imperfect in the source).

English newspapers, diurnal publications, and the 1662 Licensing Act

16th–17th centuries: European rulers sought to control the press; English diurnals emerged as daily parliamentary/public actions reports.
1630s: Londons’s diurnals documented parliamentary actions, contributing to political awareness and tension.
King Charles I’s absolutist zeal clashes with Parliament; Civil War ensues in the 1640s; Charles I is executed; after the monarchy is restored, licensing controls re-emerge.
1662: Printing Act of 1662 in England—licensing required for all newspapers; noncompliance punished by jail. This act extended into the American colonies.
The first English newspaper affected by the act: the Oxford Gazette (1665).

Early colonial press and licensing dynamics in America

Before licensing reform, early American print attempts faced government pushback; the first newspaper in the colonies, Public Occurrences, Both Foreign and Domestic, by Benjamin Harris, was shut down after one issue due to its critical content about officials.
1704: Parliament/King grant permission to colonial governors to license print; Boston Newsletter becomes the first colonial newspaper approved for print by a governor, streamlining the licensing process.

James Franklin, Benjamin Franklin, and the birth of American practical journalism

James Franklin (James of the Franklin printer family) prints the Boston Gazette in the colonies; his younger brother Benjamin Franklin apprentices in Philadelphia.
The New England Current (later renamed the Hartford Courant) begins as a Connecticut project; Franklin recognizes audiences beyond the elite and includes human-interest stories to broaden readership.
Franklin’s stance: he pushes for truthful reporting; ends up jailed for contempt when he asserts independence from licensing constraints (his brother runs the printer business during the jail term).
Benjamin Franklin later becomes a leading printer-editor: he acquires the Pennsylvania Gazette, adds features that shape modern newspapers.
Notable innovations attributed to Franklin in the Gazette: first political cartoons, the “Join or Die” political cartoon, and the first weather reports in a newspaper. He also popularizes a practical blend of news with useful information (e.g., weather) for everyday readers.
Franklin’s influence continues through his other publishing ventures, including the success of Poor Richard’s Almanack (as reflected in the text’s mention of the Almanac and associated ideas).

John Peter Zenger and the libel case that shaped free press law

John Peter Zenger, editor of the New York Weekly Journal, published critical pieces about the governor.
He was arrested in 1734 on charges of seditious libel (defaming a public official in print).
Defense by Andrew Hamilton (father of Alexander Hamilton) argued that truthfulness and verifiability were key to defaming content; Zenger’s defense succeeded.
Ruling established that newspapers could publish government critiques as long as statements were factually true and verifiable; this laid the groundwork for free press and later constitutional protections.

Revolutionary era press: partisan vs commercial press; early U.S. political journalism

As tensions rise toward independence, printers and newspapers align with factions; Samuel Adams and Isaiah Thomas advocate independence via the Boston Gazette and the Country Journal.
Other printers (e.g., James Ribington, John Dickinson) distribute loyalist content; the press becomes deeply partisan.
Emergence of the partisan press: newspapers tied to political and financial supporters, shaping editorial stances and public opinion.
Simultaneously, the commercial press emerges: businesses and economic interests publish papers focused on commerce and economics, with little emphasis on war-related political content.

Early U.S. party politics and the press after independence

After independence, the new republic features Federalists and Anti-Federalists in newspapers.
Federalist press: Gazette of the United States, edited by John Fenno, with contributions from prominent Federalists like Alexander Hamilton and John Adams (circa 1789).
Anti-Federalist press: National Gazette, edited by Philip Freneau, countering Federalist policies.
Although the First Amendment existed, it was not robustly protected or exercised by many—press was still treated as a political tool rather than a protected right.
John Adams’ presidency (late 1790s) saw heightened sensitivity to criticism and the passage of the Alien and Sedition Acts in 1798, restricting criticism of the president, Congress, and the Supreme Court.
Repeal by Thomas Jefferson after his election; unconditional pardons issued; Jefferson emphasizes protecting the First Amendment and free expression.

Economic model of early newspapers and pricing

Newspapers were relatively expensive and targeted toward the educated and wealthy elites; typical price around 0.06 ext{ dollars} (6 cents) per issue—quite costly for the average worker who earned around 0.85 ext{ dollars per day}.
Subscriptions were common and often prepaid for a year; this created a broad access barrier and influenced who could read newspapers.
Advertisements and the layout of early papers: examples like The Advertiser and The Commercial show ads at the front and back, with the news content housed inside.

The penny press revolution in the 1830s

The penny press era begins around 1833 ext{ (circa)} with Benjamin Day’s New York Sun selling for a penny.
Steam-powered presses enable mass production and lower unit costs, enabling wider circulation.
The rise of the “newsies” (street-corner sellers) who shouted “extra, extra” to attract buyers.
Day emphasizes factual reporting and human-interest stories—following Franklin’s approach—to broaden audience and boost sales.
The model focuses on everyday people and their experiences, not just elite or political news.

James Gordon Bennett and the modern newspaper business model

James Gordon Bennett Sr. becomes a newspaper press baron and pushes a strategy of minimizing overt political influence in reporting.
Bennett’s papers aim to reach the middle and working classes, shaping a broad readership.
Advertising revenue and circulation become central to profitability; patent medicines emerge as major advertisers, shaping the commercial landscape of news.
Classifieds and want ads become a staple feature, foreshadowing a modern newspaper’s revenue streams.
The rise of advertising and circulation as the primary drivers of newspaper viability, with politics kept relatively separate from general reporting compared to earlier partisan papers.

Global diffusion and the end of the era discussed

The United States experience with press and political discourse influenced European press practices; by the late 19th century, Europe—especially Great Britain—moves toward more objective reporting as literacy rises.
The style and structure of the American press inform European reform efforts, though not universally adopted.

Key takeaways and themes to remember

The press began as a public posting of events (Acta Diurna) and gradually evolved into a system of regular newspapers with varying degrees of objectivity and bias.
Licensing and political power heavily influenced what could be published (1662 Printing Act; licensing in the colonies).
Early press actors (e.g., James and Benjamin Franklin, John Peter Zenger) helped shape reporting norms, including truthfulness, verifiability, and the concept of free expression.
The U.S. experience with partisan vs commercial press laid groundwork for the modern press system, including the public role of editorial pages and the rise of the commercial press:
- Partisan press centers on sponsorship and ideology; it contributes to editorial pages and opinion sections.
- Commercial press centers on circulation, advertising, and reach, with a more audience-focused approach and less explicit political indoctrination.
Important dates to know (for quick recall):
- Notizi Scripti in Venice: 1556.
- Relation in the Netherlands: 1605.
- First weekly print in Europe: 1605.
- Notable oldest surviving newspaper from Sweden: 1645.
- Printing Act in England: 1662; Oxford Gazette affected: 1665.
- Public Occurrences (colonial attempt): (early 1690s, first colonial newspaper, short-lived).
- Boston Newsletter (colonial) approval under governors: 1704.
- Zenger trial: 1734; foundation for free press and later First Amendment concepts.
- Federalist papers (Gazette of the United States) and Anti-Federalist papers (National Gazette): around 1789.
- Alien and Sedition Acts: 1798; repealed under Jefferson, 1801 (pardons).
- Penny press rise: 1833, with Benjamin Day’s New York Sun.