A Basic History

Signal fire

Hebrew shofar

Roman bucina

Cavalry bugle

Semaphore tower

Writing

What is writing? Turning sound symbols (talking) into visual symbols Turning sound symbols (talking) into visual symbols Sound symbols are gone in an instant Sound symbols are gone in an instant Visual symbols can last forever Visual symbols can last forever

Lascoux Cave painting ca. 17,000 BCE Just a noun and a verb Just a noun and a verb

Marriage contract ca. 17,000 BCE - pictures reduced to essentials

Pictures for abstractions

Means “Man”

Means “Soul”

Hieroglyph syllables

Hieroglyph letter - L

Evolution of pictures to symbols

Cuneiform

Phoenician traders

Symbols become an alphabet Phoenician ca BCE

ST What’s the word?

Greek alphabet added vowels

Caen

L’chaim loch

Hand written lasted 1000 years

Illuminated text

First change from handwriting to printing came in 888 CE The Diamond Sutra, a Buddhist scripture, created with block printing

Chinese block printing – ca CE

Entire page with one block

Chinese type – entire words ca CE

Another little side trip

The Black Death –

After the Black Death people had two things: After the Black Death people had two things: Lots of money Lots of money A desire to enjoy life A desire to enjoy life Fun and games like fairs and celebrations Fun and games like fairs and celebrations The fanciest clothes they could afford The fanciest clothes they could afford

The rich wore silk and gold wire The rich wore silk and gold wire The middle class wore woolens The middle class wore woolens Everyone wore linen, especially -- Everyone wore linen, especially --

Linen underwear

What this has to do with printing What was necessary to printing was paper What was necessary to printing was paper The only thing available up to this time was parchment, expensive and uncommon The only thing available up to this time was parchment, expensive and uncommon Linen sheets and underwear wore out and were thrown away Linen sheets and underwear wore out and were thrown away Linen rags can be turned into paper Linen rags can be turned into paper

Now there’s plenty of paper Now there’s plenty of paper Everyone uses it as trade and investing increases Everyone uses it as trade and investing increases Contracts Contracts Record keeping Record keeping However, because of the Black Death there weren’t enough scribes for all the paperwork However, because of the Black Death there weren’t enough scribes for all the paperwork Something had to be done Something had to be done

The next, and greatest change in printing came in 1450 CE

Johannes Gutenberg c

Moveable Type

Gutenberg Press

William Caxton – First printer in English

Spelling was idiosyncratic

Knight

Knife

First Folio of Shakespeare

Images could be printed

Franklin’s Pennsylvania Gazette

American Magazine

Poor Richard’s Almanack

Paine’s Common Sense

Sheet-fed rotary press

Roll-fed rotary press

Mergenthaler’s Linotype Machine

Newspapers Started in the early 1600s Started in the early 1600s Corontos, one page Dutch news sheets imported to England Corontos, one page Dutch news sheets imported to England Diurnals – English news sheets started 1641 Diurnals – English news sheets started 1641

First American newspaper

Boston News-Letter – 1704

New-England Courant

Zenger’s Weekly Journal

Effects of these 3 newspapers a newspaper with popular support could challenge authority a newspaper with popular support could challenge authority financial independence can lead to editorial independence financial independence can lead to editorial independence government should not control the press because it can stifle the truth government should not control the press because it can stifle the truth

The Daily Sun

Joseph Pulitzer

William Randolph Hearst

Explosion of USS Maine in Havana Harbor

Canons of Journalism and Statement of Principles – 1923 “The right of a newspaper to attract and hold readers is restricted by nothing but considerations of public welfare.” The beginnings of the modern ideal of journalism: be objective, don’t be sensationalistic, operate for the public good

Magazines

American magazines – 1740s

Saturday Evening Post

Keys to success Rapidly rising literacy rates Rapidly rising literacy rates Lower printing costs Lower printing costs Spread of social movements like abolition and labor reform Spread of social movements like abolition and labor reform Made for compelling reading Made for compelling reading The use of specialty writers rather than general reporters or book authors The use of specialty writers rather than general reporters or book authors

Growth of magazines Rise of women’s magazines that advertisers loved Rise of women’s magazines that advertisers loved Postal Act of 1879 that lower mailing rates for magazines Postal Act of 1879 that lower mailing rates for magazines Railroads crisscrossing the entire country Railroads crisscrossing the entire country Made magazines the first truly national medium Made magazines the first truly national medium

Life Magazine