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During the colonial era, with only had around 2000 subscribers, the newspaper was not very popular. This was mostly for two reasons; newspapers were were extremely expensive. A single paper exceeded the average monthly wage of colonists, resulting in newspapers being purchased only by wealthy Englishmen living in the colonies.

During this time, newspapers reported on a much smaller range of topics compared to modern journalism. These papers focused on European welfare, diplomacy, and colonial statutes. While this was useful for people living in England, American colonists had no use for this information, thus many of the American colonists were not interested in reading newspapers.

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In the early days of the American colonies, newspapers were the sole provinces of the wealthy administrators of the English Crown. The cost was high, typically several pounds per week. At the time this was more than the average colonist's monthly wages. These periodicals typical dealt with issues like European warfare and diplomacy and colonial statutes, important matters for English gentlemen but not for the colonists. As a result, there were rarely more than 2,000 subscribers for any given periodical. Until 1750, few colonies had more than a single paper in operation at any given time.

Nonetheless, the colonies had unusually high literacy rates. It is commonly estimated that around 90% of whites in northern America were literate by the early 18 th century. By comparison, only half of the white populace in England was literate at that time. This was largely a result of the mostly protestant makeup of the northern colonies. Protestantism stresses literacy in order to ensure that worshipers could understand holy texts without reliance on the priesthood. In this way, Protestantism created a fertile ground for the newspapers that were to come.

Newspapers and The Revolution

After 1750, the situation changed dramatically. As the English crown began to regulate and tax more activities in America, politics became highly relevant to the daily lives of all those living in the colonies. Newspapers sprang up across the colonies, often with expressly political intent. One particular important moment for American newspapers was the publications of a series of newspaper articles entitled Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania to the Inhabitants of the British Colonies in 1767. The series argued that because the colonists were not represented in the English Parliament, they therefore could not properly tax them. This series was published in over twenty papers in the colonies.

A few years later, a group of experienced debaters led by Samuel Adams used newspapers to inform 260 towns on issues of overbearing English policies and invited each to express their own opinions on the matters. Incredibly, most of the towns responded, with community leaders drafting documents and the whole town voting on the responses.

Thomas Paine's Common Sense is rightly understood as the document that did the most to foment a revolutionary spirit in America. Its unprecedented sales of over half a million copies in the first year made it the most read political document of its time. Less appreciated is the extent to which Common Sense owed its success to the broad circulation of newspapers throughout the country. The tract received tremendous publicity from the papers. Furthermore, R. Bell, the pamphlet's publisher, relied heavily on the distribution networks created by the newspapers in order to ensure the document would reach as broad an audience as possible.

News in the Republic

From the moment America gained its independence, the founding fathers recognized the importance of the press. However, until the federal government became firmly established in 1787 there were few large-scale changes to the system that had served the colonies before the revolution. The ratification of the constitution changed the situation completely. A relatively little known clause in the constitution, the Postal Clause, quickly brought a much larger scale system of distribution of information into being. This clause allowed the federal government to obtain a monopoly on mail delivery and use government funds and legal rights to expand the postal network.

A long line of postmaster generals, starting with Benjamin Franklin, did just that. In 1788 there were less than 100 post offices but by 1800 there were almost 1,000. Twenty years later there were 4,500. A large and connected mail routing system allowed citizens of the republic to send news to one another but the effect of the post office on news accessibility was far greater than that.

Those in charge of the federal government decided that even more important than private mail was the availability of newspapers to the public. In 1791, Madison remarked that Congress had an obligation to improve the "circulation of newspapers through the entire body of the people". He helped champion the Post Office Act of 1792. The act included a provision for the delivery of newspapers by the Post Office at extremely low rates for delivery of newspapers. For the century following the passage of the Post Office Act, newspapers often accounted for more than 95% of the weight of mail transported by the post office, but never made up for more than 15% of the revenue. The result of this large indirect subsidy of the fledgling industry was enormous. In 1790, before the passage of the act there was less than one newspaper produced for every 5 citizens. By 1840 there were almost three papers printed per person.
Next: The Gilded Age

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In the early days of the American colonies, newspapers were the sole provinces of the wealthy administrators of the English Crown. The cost was high, typically several pounds per week. At the time this was more than the average colonist's monthly wages.

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Rather than being a specific invention, the penny press refers to a business practice in which newspapers are sold for a single cent. The origin of the practice is thought to be from Benjamin Day when he founded “The Sun” Newspaper in New York to save his failing printing business. This allowed for many more middle-class Americans to buy newspapers and access news. Prior to this practice, newspapers were sold for 6 cents. Day’s newspaper also gained more popularity due to the hiring of children to sell papers outside on the streets of New York. This allowed newspapers not only to be financially accessible for Americans, but also physically accessible because people no longer had to go into stores to by the paper.

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The Penny Press was the term used to describe the revolutionary business tactic of producing newspapers which sold for one cent. The Penny Press is generally considered to have started in 1833, when Benjamin Day founded The Sun, a New York City newspaper.

Day, who had been working in the printing business, started a newspaper as a way to salvage his business. He had nearly gone broke after losing much of his business during a local financial panic caused by the cholera epidemic of 1832.

His idea of selling a newspaper for a penny seemed radical at a time when most newspapers sold for six cents. And though Day merely saw it as a business strategy to salvage his business, his analysis touched upon a class divide in society. Newspapers that sold for six cents were simply beyond the reach of many readers.

Day reasoned that many working class people were literate, but were not newspaper customers simply because no one had published a newspaper targeted to them. By launching The Sun, Day was taking a gamble. But it proved successful.

Besides making the newspaper very affordable, Day instituted another innovation, the newsboy. By hiring boys to hawk copies on street corners, The Sun was both affordable and readily available. People wouldn't even have to step into a shop to buy it.

Influence of The Sun

Day did not have much of a background in journalism, and The Sun had fairly loose journalistic standards. In 1834 it published the notorious "Moon Hoax," in which the newspaper claimed scientists had found life on the moon.

The story was outrageous and proven to be utterly false. But instead of the ridiculous stunt discrediting The Sun, the reading public found it entertaining. The Sun became even more popular.

The success of The Sun encouraged James Gordon Bennett, who had serious journalistic experience, to found The Herald, another newspaper priced at one cent. Bennett was quickly successful and before long he could charge two cents for a single copy of his paper.

Subsequent newspapers, including the New York Tribune of Horace Greeley and the New York Times of Henry J. Raymond, also began publication as penny papers. But by the time of the Civil War, the standard price of a New York City newspaper was two cents.

By marketing a newspaper to the widest possible public, Benjamin Day inadvertently kicked off a very competitive era in American journalism. As new immigrants came to America, the penny press provided very economical reading material. And the case could be made that by coming up with a scheme to save his failing printing business, Benjamin Day had a lasting impact on American society.

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Startling Price Cut to a Penny Made Newspapers Available to Everyone

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The Penny Press was the term used to describe the revolutionary business tactic of producing newspapers which sold for one cent. The Penny Press is generally considered to have started in 1833, when Benjamin Day founded The Sun, a New York City newspaper.

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Yellow journalism focused on using sensaionalism rather than facts to attract readers and increase circulation. This was most common in 19th century America and impacted many foreign and political affairs of the time. This practice pushed the United States into war with Cuba and the Philippines resulting in America gaining more territory overseas. While yellow journalism did not last for a very long time, it had many impacts on journalism’s current form, banner headlines, illustrations and comic strips all originated from this era. Overall, yellow journalism had a massive influence on everyday American and caused an outbreak in international conflict, expanding US territories and influence.

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This article was most recently revised and updated by

yellow journalism, the use of lurid features and sensationalized news in newspaper publishing to attract readers and increase circulation. The phrase was coined in the 1890s to describe the tactics employed in the furious competition between two New York City newspapers, the and the .

Joseph Pulitzer had purchased the New York World in 1883 and, using colourful, sensational reporting and crusades against political corruption and social injustice, had won the largest newspaper circulation in the country. His supremacy was challenged in 1895 when William Randolph Hearst, the son of a California mining tycoon, moved into New York City and bought the rival Journal. Hearst, who had already built the San Francisco Examiner into a hugely successful mass-circulation paper, soon made it plain that he intended to do the same in New York City by outdoing his competitors in sensationalism, crusades, and Sunday features. He brought in some of his staff from San Francisco and hired some away from Pulitzer's paper, including Richard F. Outcault, a cartoonist who had drawn an immensely popular comic picture series, The Yellow Kid, for the Sunday World. After Outcault's defection, the comic was drawn for the World by George B. Luks, and the two rival picture series excited so much attention that the competition between the two newspapers came to be described as "yellow journalism." This all-out rivalry and its accompanying promotion developed large circulations for both papers and affected American journalism in many cities.

The era of yellow journalism may be said to have ended shortly after the turn of the 20th century, with the World's gradual retirement from the competition in sensationalism. Some techniques of the yellow journalism period, however, became more or less permanent and widespread, such as banner headlines, coloured comics, and copious illustration. In other media, most notably television and the Internet, many of the sensationalist practices of yellow journalism became more commonplace.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica Brian Duignan.

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Yellow journalism | Definition, History, & Facts

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Yellow journalism, the use of lurid features and sensationalized news in newspaper publishing to attract readers and increase circulation. The phrase was coined in the 1890s to describe the tactics employed in the furious competition between two New York City newspapers, the World and the Journal.

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In the current day, journalism is the most accessible it ever has been. Journalist now have access to a range of contract and more information to create better reports, news can be spread much quicker and more easily, and journalism is no longer limited to a select few businesses. However, modern journalism is not without its flaws. Prior to the digital age, only some people had access to mass printing their news or sharing it through radio or television. Now, anyone can publish their own stories and opinions, while this is great for democracy in journalism and sharing a range of perspectives and news reports, this also often leads to rampant misinformation.

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The Power of Social Media in Modern Journalism - Yellowbrick

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Explore how social media has transformed modern journalism, from democratizing news to shaping storytelling methods. Learn the impacts and future prospects.