Media Literacy: Print Media

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Commercial Press

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A type of newspaper that reported on trade and business dealings and was paid for by the promotion of products and the sale of advertisements.

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Partisan Press

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Publishers that served as the media voice of American political parties and other groups with political or ideological agendas.

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Fourth Estate

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A term credited to Scottish essayist Thomas Carlyle (1759-1881). It refers to the free press, which is deemed responsible for checking the balance of power of the other three estates: the executive, legislative and judicial branches.

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Penny Press

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Newspapers that cost one penny, they catered to a growing literate audience more interested in entertainment and knowledge than in politics or ideology.

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Industrial Revolution

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A period of advancements in agricultures, manufacturing, mining and transportation that spanned the 18th and 19 th centuries.

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News Bulletin

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A short news piece that avoids the longer, narrative style of traditional articles.

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Inverted Pyramid

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Reporting structure wherein the most important facts are presented in the lead sentences, followed by more elaborate details that support those facts.

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News Syndicates

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Service cooperatives that allow member news organizations to share stories and resources.

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Teletype

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Telegraphic machines that printed messages type on the transmitter’s keyboard.

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Postal Act of 1792

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Federal legislation that enabled newspapers to be sent within 100 miles of their publishing location at a cost of one cent per copy

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Subscribers

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individuals who commit to paying for a printed product (magazines) for a specified period of time at a specified cost.

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Magazinists

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Authors who specifically wrote content for magazines.

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Godey’s Lady’s Book

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One of the first American magazines that catered exclusively to female readers.

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Novel

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Long-form fiction. In their early incarnations, novels were often broken down into episodes for publication over several issues.

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Cliffhanger

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A suspenseful chapter ending in a serially published novel that encourages readers to purchase the next issue.

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Dime Novel

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Mass-produced novel that cost 10 cents and was intended to accommodate customers of the rapidly expanding railroad system.

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Fourdrinier Machine

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Technology that made paper from raw materials much more quickly than previous machines.

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Stereotype System

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Invented by Firmin Didot (1764-1836), a system that used a soft metal printing plate, with each plate representing an entire page of a publication including all text and graphics.

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Typewriter

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Machines with alphabetic keyboards that replaced handwritten work.

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Editorial Process

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The phase of the publishing process during which draft stories are read and corrected (sometimes cut down or refocused) by editors.

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Pulitzer Prize

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Named after Joseph Pulitzer, an award given to the most highly recognized professionals in journalism and letters, drama, and music.

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Lithography

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A printing technology in which only the image to be printed requires ink

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Hutchins Commission

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A U.S. government commission formed at the request of Henry Luce to investigate whether the press was functioning in society as nations Founding Fathers had intended.

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Syndicated Comic Strips

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Comic strips that appear in multiple newspapers.

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Editorial Advisory Board

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An oversight organization developed by DC Comics during World War II to ensure that all comic books met accepted standards for morality.

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Graphic Novel

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An expansion of the comic book genre that summarizes an entire story with a beginning, middle, and end, and often delves into subject matters and themes of a more mature audience.

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Manga

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“Whimsical Pictures”

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Newspaper Publicity Act of 1912

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An act of federal legislation that made it mandatory for newspaper companies to disclose publication ownership and to label clearly advertisements that might be confused with news or editorial content.

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Committee on Public Information

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U.S. government Committee headed by George Creel

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Dangerous News

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According to the Committee on Public Information, news that might contain information about military movements or possible threats against the president.

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Questionable News

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According to the Committee on Public Information, rumors of U.S. activity at home or abroad and reports of technological advancements that could be appropriated by America’s enemies during World War I.

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Routine News

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According to the Committee on Public Information, general-interest news that could be printed without authorization during World War I.

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Tabloids

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Publications devoted to sensational news.

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Byline

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The inclusion of the author’s name with a newspaper article

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Gossip Column

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A forum for entertainment-oriented news established by Walter Winchell

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News Spin

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U.S. government influence over media content through regulation.

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Newspaper Preservation Act

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Federal legislation stating that for newspapers to participate in a joint operating agreement (JOA), one of the papers had to demonstrate proof of financial trouble.

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Muckrakers

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Reporters who attempt to educate America’s middle class by writing serious pieces that exposed the relationships between the business world and the government, laying bare the rampant corruption or other misconduct of government agencies and elected officials to the public.

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News Magazines

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A hybrid of the traditional newspaper and the quality magazine.

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Book Rights Registry

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A database that documents legal status of all works and arbitrates disputes between parties claiming rights to any work in the database.