FAMST 101D Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Bernhard Wolff, Paul Reuter, The Baltimore Sun
Document Summary
Elite medium: gentry (aristocracy), merchants, opinion leaders were the readers (people who were literate, educated, privileged) The language was specific to the region (think back to carey article, before language was "flattened and standardized") Some info from afar via mail or traveler"s accounts. As interest grew in foreign events, newspapers paid for "correspondence" Growing demand for commercial info drove demand for newswire services. Collaboration of newswire companies and government led to monopolies. Biggest telegraph users were businesses, governments, and news organizations. "producer goods" - the telegraph allowed for production, control, and management. Most people experienced the telegraph through institutions (as end consumers) In the us, there were similar telegraph developments. It was an elite and local medium until the "penny press" The rise of the "penny press" began in the 1830s. Popularization of news, so that everyday people could buy newspapers. Much revenue and competition - # of people reading newspapers grew exponentially.
