Main Points

Newspapers in colonial America were published with permission of the local government. A free press did not appear until after the Revolution.
The mass newspaper arrived in the 1830s with the publication of Benjamin Day's New York Sun, the first of the penny-press papers.
The era of yellow journalism popularized sensationalism, crusades, and human-interest reporting and introduced more attractive newspaper designs.
Many newspapers were merged or folded during the early 1900s. Tabloid papers became popular. The trend toward consolidation would continue to the years following World War II.
There are four types of daily papers: national newspapers, large metro dailies, suburban dailies, and small-town dailies. Other major types of papers include weeklies, special-service newspapers, and minority newspapers.
More than 1,000 papers now have online versions.
Newspaper ownership is characterized by large group owners and declining competition.
Newspapers are currently enjoying financial prosperity but are worried about competition from online media.
Newspaper audiences are measured by the Audit Bureau of Circulations. Newspaper readership has declined for the past several decades, with big-city dailies hardest hit by the decrease.

2002 McGraw-Hill Higher Education
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