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| The penny press: news for the masses. |
| by Alejandra Scherian |
The Penny Press was most
famous for its low price, a penny per paper. It became popular
with the American public because while other papers were
priced around six cents, they were able to sell their
paper for just a penny. The low price made
newspapers and the news available to more than just upper
class citizens for the first time.
The labor and lower classes
were able to purchase a paper and read the news. As more people
began buying papers throughout the country, news and journalism
became more important overall.
Newspapers also began paying more attention to the public
it served. They were quick to realize that the same information
and news that interested the six cent public, did not interest
the penny public. Newspapers used information from police
stations, criminal courts and divorce courts to fill their
paper and make it more appealing to their new public.
The heavy dependence on advertising as a major source of revenue
was a main reason that the penny press was able to sell papers
for a lower price than anyone else. Other papers relied
heavily on subscriptions and daily sales.
The price of paper and materials used to produce the newspapers
also decreased making the production of the newspaper itself
less expensive.
A pioneer during the penny press era was Benjamin H. Day,
founder of the New York Sun. The Sun was the first popular
penny paper. The paper's motto, printed at
the top of every front page was:
"The object of this paper is to lay before the public,
at a price within the means of every one, all the news of
the day, and at the same time offer an advantageous medium
for advertisements."
The changes made to the newspaper during the Penny Press era
set a precedent for the way newspapers operate today. Newspapers
rely heavily on advertising as a main source of income and
that is also a main reason they are still being offered at
relatively low prices today. Newspapers also pay more attention
to their surrounding communities and report of important information
more diligently and objectively.
Newspapers changed their coverage when they no longer relied
so dependently on subscriptions or daily sales to make a profit.
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| Glossary |
were
priced: costaban
penny: centavo
upper class: clase alta
labor ... classes: clase obrera
revenue: ingresos
relied ...on: dependían de
motto: dicho, frase
profit: ganancia, beneficio
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