Timeline

NEWSPAPERS TIMELINE

1690 Benjamin Harris publishes first newspaper in America: Publick Occurrences both Foreign and Domestick

1704 John Campbell publishes Boston News Letter.

1729 Benjamin Franklin starts Pennsylvania Gazette.

1734 Trial of John Peter Zenger. Zenger's acquittal a symbolic victory for press freedom.

1754 First newspaper editorial cartoon published in Pennsylvania Gazette.

1765 Stamp Act imposes tax on newspapers. Fiercely resisted by editors and readers.

1770s Newspapers help fuel revolution.

1776 Pennsylvania Evening Post prints Declaration of Independence.

1790 Congress passes First Amendment establishing a free press.

1793 Pennsylvania Evening Post becomes America's first daily newspaper.

1790-1833 Era of the Political Press.

1827 First African-American newspaper.

http://www.pbs.org/blackpress/

1833 Benjamin Day publishes New York Sun, starts Penny Press era.

1844 Invention of telegraph. Soon used by newspapers to transmit news.

1848 Birth of Associated Press, first news gathering association.

1883 Joseph Pulitzer publishes New York World, start of yellow journalism.

1895 William Randolph Hearst publishes New York Journal. Starts intense competition with Pulitzer.

1907 United Press becomes second news gathering association.

1920s Birth of tabloid journalism, best exemplified by New York Daily News.

http://www.nydn.com/

1950s Newspapers face increasing competition from television for national advertising dollars.

1960s Birth of the underground newspaper.

1970s Growth of newspaper chains.

1982 USA Today starts publication. Introduces color, innovative graphics and a terse writing style to American journalism.

http://www.usatoday.com/

1995 Start of "public journalism."

http://www.newspaperlinks.com/

1995-2000 Newspapers establish web sites and publish online editions.