The Invention of News : How the World Came to Know About Itself

Long Before The Invention Of Printing, Let Alone The Availability Of A Daily Newspaper, People Desired To Be Informed. In The Pre-industrial Era News Was Gathered And Shared Through Conversation And Gossip, Civic Ceremony, Celebration, Sermons, And Proclamations. The Age Of Print Brought Pamphlets, Edicts, Ballads, Journals, And The First News-sheets, Expanding The News Community From Local To Worldwide. This Groundbreaking Book Tracks The History Of News In Ten Countries Over The Course Of Four Centuries. It Evaluates The Unexpected Variety Of Ways In Which Information Was Transmitted In The Premodern World As Well As The Impact Of Expanding News Media On Contemporary Events And The Lives Of An Ever-more-informed Public. Andrew Pettegree Investigates Who Controlled The News And Who Reported It; The Use Of News As A Tool Of Political Protest And Religious Reform; Issues Of Privacy And Titillation; The Persistent Need For News To Be Current And Journalists Trustworthy; And People's Changed Sense Of Themselves As They Experienced Newly Opened Windows On The World. By The Close Of The Eighteenth Century, Pettegree Concludes, Transmission Of News Had Become So Efficient And Widespread That European Citizens--now Aware Of Wars, Revolutions, Crime, Disasters, Scandals, And Other Events--were Poised To Emerge As Actors In The Great Events Unfolding Around Them-- Introduction: All The News That's Fit To Tell -- The Beginnings Of News Publication: Power And Imagination ; The Wheels Of Commerce ; The First News Prints ; State And Nation ; Confidential Correspondents ; Marketplace And Tavern ; Triumph And Tragedy -- Mercury Rising: Speeding The Posts ; The First Newspapers ; War And Rebellion ; Storm In A Coffee Cup -- Enlightenment?: The Search For Truth ; The Age Of The Journal ; In Business ; From Our Own Correspondent ; Cry Freedom ; How Samuel Sewall Read His Paper -- Conclusion. Andrew Pettegree. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 408-428) And Index. The extraordinary history of news and its dissemination, from medieval pilgrim tales to the birth of the newspaper Long before the invention of printing, let alone the availability of a daily newspaper, people desired to be informed. In the pre-industrial era news was gathered and shared through conversation and gossip, civic ceremony, celebration, sermons, and proclamations. The age of print brought pamphlets, edicts, ballads, journals, and the first news-sheets, expanding the news community from local to worldwide. This groundbreaking book tracks the history of news in ten countries over the course of four centuries. It evaluates the unexpected variety of ways in which information was transmitted in the premodern world as well as the impact of expanding news media on contemporary events and the lives of an ever-more-informed public. Andrew Pettegree investigates who controlled the news and who reported it; the use of news as a tool of political protest and religious reform; issues of privacy and titillation; the persistent need for news to be current and journalists trustworthy; and peoples changed sense of themselves as they experienced newly opened windows on the world. By the close of the eighteenth century, Pettegree concludes, transmission of news had become so efficient and widespread that European citizensnow aware of wars, revolutions, crime, disasters, scandals, and other eventswere poised to emerge as actors in the great events unfolding around them. "Long before the invention of printing, let alone the availability of a daily newspaper, people desired to be informed. In the pre-industrial era news was gathered and shared through conversation and gossip, civic ceremony, celebration, sermons, and proclamations. The age of print brought pamphlets, edicts, ballads, journals, and the first news-sheets, expanding the news community from local to worldwide. This groundbreaking book tracks the history of news in ten countries over the course of four centuries. It evaluates the unexpected variety of ways in which information was transmitted in the premodern world as well as the impact of expanding news media on contemporary events and the lives of an ever-more-informed public. Andrew Pettegree investigates who controlled the news and who reported it ; the use of news as a tool of political protest and religious reform ; issues of privacy and titillation ; the persistent need for news to be current and journalists trustworthy ; and people's changed sense of themselves as they experienced newly opened windows on the world. By the close of the eighteenth century, Pettegree concludes, transmission of news had become so efficient and widespread that European citizens-now aware of wars, revolutions, crime, disasters, scandals, and other events-were poised to emerge as actors in the great events unfolding around them"--Provided by publisher "Long before the invention of printing, let alone the availability of a daily newspaper, people desired to be informed. In the pre-industrial era news was gathered and shared through conversation and gossip, civic ceremony, celebration, sermons, and proclamations. The age of print brought pamphlets, edicts, ballads, journals, and the first news-sheets, expanding the news community from local to worldwide. This groundbreaking book tracks the history of news in ten countries over the course of four centuries. It evaluates the unexpected variety of ways in which information was transmitted in the premodern world as well as the impact of expanding news media on contemporary events and the lives of an ever-more-informed public. Andrew Pettegree investigates who controlled the news and who reported it; the use of news as a tool of political protest and religious reform; issues of privacy and titillation; the persistent need for news to be current and journalists trustworthy; and people's changed sense of themselves as they experienced newly opened windows on the world. By the close of the eighteenth century, Pettegree concludes, transmission of news had become so efficient and widespread that European citizens-now aware of wars, revolutions, crime, disasters, scandals, and other events-were poised to emerge as actors in the great events unfolding around them"-- Provided by publisher “A fascinating account of the gathering and dissemination of news from the end of the Middle Ages to the French Revolution” and the rise of the newspaper (Glenn Altschuler, The Huffington Post). Long before the invention of printing, let alone the daily newspaper, people wanted to stay informed. In the pre-industrial era, news was mostly shared through gossip, sermons, and proclamations. The age of print brought pamphlets, ballads, and the first news-sheets. In this groundbreaking history, renowned historian Andrew Pettegree tracks the evolution of news in ten countries over the course of four centuries, examining the impact of news media on contemporary events and the lives of an ever-more-informed public. The Invention of News sheds light on who controlled the news and who reported it; the use of news as a tool of political protest and religious reform; issues of privacy and titillation; the persistent need for news to be current and for journalists to be trustworthy; and people’s changing sense of themselves and their communities as they experienced newly opened windows on the world. “This expansive view of news and how it reached people will be fascinating to readers interested in communication and cultural history.” —Library Journal (starred review) "Long before the invention of printing, let alone the daily newspaper, people wanted to stay informed. In the pre-industrial era, news was mostly shared through gossip, sermons, and proclamations. The age of print brought pamphlets, ballads, and the first news-sheets. In this groundbreaking history, renowned historian Andrew Pettegree tracks the evolution of news in ten countries over the course of four centuries, examining the impact of news media on contemporary events and the lives of an ever-more-informed public. The Invention of News sheds light on who controlled the news and who reported it; the use of news as a tool of political protest and religious reform; issues of privacy and titillation; the persistent need for news to be current and for journalists to be trustworthy; and people's changing sense of themselves and their communities as they experienced newly opened windows on the world."--OverDrive Contents 5 Maps 6 Introduction All the News that’s Fit to Tell 7 Part one. THE BEGINNINGS OF NEWS PUBLICATION 23 1. Power and Imagination 23 2. The Wheels of Commerce 46 3. The First News Prints 64 4. State and Nation 82 5. Confidential Correspondents 102 6. Marketplace and Tavern 123 7. Triumph and Tragedy 145 Part two. MERCURY RISING 173 8. Speeding the Posts 173 9. The First Newspapers 188 10. War and Rebellion 214 11. Storm in a Coffee Cup 236 Part three. ENLIGHTENMENT? 257 12. The Search for Truth 257 13. The Age of the Journal 275 14. In Business 295 15. From Our Own Correspondent 314 16. Cry Freedom 332 17. How Samuel Sewall Read his Paper 352 Conclusion 368 Notes 379 Bibliography 414 Index 435 Illustration Acknowledgements 449 Acknowledgements 450