Journalism

American journalism experienced dramatic growth and development in the antebellum period.  Newspapers had existed in the American colonies since the early part of the 18th century and were fairly common by the time Americans had defeated the British in the American Revolution and were setting up their new nation. In 1800, America had more 200 newspapers, including 24 dailies. In general, however, these publications were primarily mouthpieces for political parties rather than independent, objective entities.  The Gazette of the United States, for example, promoted the ideas of Alexander Hamilton and the other Federalists, and the National Gazette spoke for the Thomas Jefferson and his Democratic-Republicans.  The centerpiece of a typical newspaper published between 1784 and 1830 was its political reporting, which often consisted of harsh, satirical, and sometimes false recriminations.  "If ever a nation was debauched by a man," Aurora editor Benjamin Franklin Bache wrote of the country's first president, "the American nation has been debauched by Washington" (qtd. in Tebbel 66).  The Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798 punished some journalists for their bold reporting, but by and large even early American reporters enjoyed the freedom promised by the First Amendment to the Constitution, which says that "Congress shall make no law . . . abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press."  The number of publications increased in these early decades of independence so that in 1820 America had 512 newspapers.  The nature of the press in America remained much the same, however, until the 1830s.  John Tebbel, author of The Compact History of the American Newspaper, explains: "From its use as a revolutionary propaganda machine to its hardly concealed official position as a private organ of a President, it had encompassed the range of partisan expression at the expense of truth and responsibility.  As a tool of party and politicians, it had not attained any particular distinction except in the excellence of writing which the best statesmen and editors brought to it" (89). 

The most important development of antebellum American journalism came in the 1830s, when New York journalists Benjamin Day and James Gordon Bennett began appealing to mass audiences.  As Tebbel notes, immigration and improvements in printing technology, which eventually included a steam-powered cylinder press, both set the stage for this new era, which came to be known as the age of the "penny press."  Unlike contemporary papers, which sold for 6 cents, Day's New York Sun and Bennett's New York Herald at first sold for a penny and were peddled in the streets.  In addition to the increased circulations, which would reach 77,000 for the Herald shortly before the Civil War, this period was noteworthy for the change in the content of newspapers.  Bennett, in particular, was a pioneer in broadening the scope and sharpening the appeal of newspaper reporting.  Whereas the early political papers were distinctive in their lively denunciations of opponents, the highlight of the Herald was its sensationalistic coverage of crime and other lurid subject matter.  Meanwhile, women's magazines  also had huge audiences, including some 150,000 subscribers for Godey's Lady's Book, published in Philadelphia. In another important development of this period, reporters such as Joseph B. McCullagh gave newspaper readers intimate accounts of the Civil War.  Indeed, in American Journalism: A History: 1690-1960, Frank Luther Mott writes: "Probably no great war has ever been so thoroughly covered by eye-witness correspondents as the American Civil War" (329). 

Bibliography

Mott, Frank Luther.  American Journalism: A History: 1690-1960. New York: Macmillan, 1962. PN 4855 .M63

Although dated, this book thoroughly covers the history of American journalism, including the eras of the political newspaper, the penny press, and the Civil War.  In a chapter called "Reporting the War Between the States," for example, Mott discusses obstacles that Civil War journalists faced, the use of special correspondents, and censorship during the war.  Mott has written or edited several books, including A History of American Magazines.

Paneth, Donald.  The Encylopedia of American Journalism. New York: Facts on File, 1983. PN 4855 .P26

This somewhat dated subject encyclopedia includes entries on people, publications, and other aspects of American journalism.  Someone doing research on journalism in antebellum America will find entries on the Alien and Sedition Acts, James Gordon Bennett, penny papers, the New York Times, and other subjects.  Facts on File has published numerous books.

Tebbel, John.  The Compact History of the American Newspaper. New York: Hawthorn, 1963. PN 4855 .T4

While it is more 35 years old, this book is a detailed, insightful, and well-written account with several chapters on newspapers in antebellum America.  It describes the early political papers and the contributions of James Gordon Bennett, among other subjects, and it offers a useful analysis of the rise of the penny press.  Tebbel is the author of more than a dozen books, including The Magazine in America, 1741-1990 and A History of Book Publishing in the United States.

People

• Benjamin Franklin Bache
• James Gordon Bennett
• Mathew Brady
• Benjamin Day
• John Fenno
• Philip Freneau
• Horace Greeley
• Sarah J. Hale
• Andrew Hamilton
• Thomas Jefferson
• Elijah Parish Lovejoy
• Joseph B. McCullagh

Events

Places

• New York, New York
• Washington, D.C.