A Solid Foundation
Believe it or not, the predecessor of newspaper predates when paper became widely available in the west. The ancient Romans, under the orders of Julius Caesar, devised a way to announce happenings to the public. This proto newspaper was called “Acta Diurna” which directly translated into “daily acts”. These notes were carved into stone or metal and placed in public spaces for citizens and traders to read. After an Acta Diurna became obsolete, they were taken down and stored as a public record.
Fresh Off The Press!
Fast forward to a century after the printing press was invented. The first appearance of newspapers as we know them today started in Europe in the 1620s where people would spread the news through foreign journals called “corantos”, though they weren’t produced frequently, and few were printed. Newspapers truly became widely circulated and streamlined when the civil war arose during 1640 and demand for information became insatiable. Many news outlets began popping up including the “Oxford Gazette”, now known as the “London Gazette”. This newfound influence of newspapers did not go unnoticed, the government and royalists started mistrusting newspapers. In retaliation, the government enforced a licensing system, where only papers approved by the royalists could circulate. Shortly after the London Gazette started only publishing official news and pieces from the government. This sanitization led to more distrust and discourse than the actual spread of information. The public at the time was growing wary of royalists. This pushed printers to risk printing unlicensed papers, following people’s yearning for a more authentic news source.
The Battle Over Words
I think it’s truly fascinating that as soon as newspapers got popular, it didn’t take long for people to fight to take control of it. The power of who controls the agenda that spreads can never be underestimated, and that has stayed true to this day. It’s truly staggering and bleak that as soon as a platform for free speech arises; it can be quickly corrupted with propaganda and taken over by people in power.
Reference
Cannon, J. A., & Crowcroft, R. (2015). newspapers. In J. Cannon, & R. Crowcroft (Eds.), Oxford quick reference: The Oxford companion to British history (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press, Inc. Credo Reference: https://ezproxy.capilanou.ca/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/oupoxford/newspapers/0?institutionId=6884
newspaper. (2018). In P. Lagasse, & Columbia University, The Columbia encyclopedia (8th ed.). Columbia University Press. Credo Reference: https://ezproxy.capilanou.ca/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/columency/newspaper/0?institutionId=6884