Founded in 1919 as the Illustrated Daily News by Joseph Medill Patterson, the New York City-based newspaper became the first successful tabloid in the United States, attracting readers with sensational crime and scandal stories, lurid photographs and entertainment features. By 1930, the newspaper had established itself as the country’s biggest newspaper. Its circulation reached over 1.5 million at that time, and its brassy, pictorial style was widely imitated. It was also an early user of the Associated Press wirephoto service, employing a large staff of photographers and contributing columnists, including Ed Sullivan, who later hosted The Ed Sullivan Show on CBS.
As the century progressed, however, readership of the Daily News began to decline. A series of financial setbacks, including the Great Depression, would exacerbate this trend, and by the 1970s the newspaper was facing serious competition from its major rivals. In 1978, the Daily News was sold for the monumental sum of one dollar to Tronc, a media company led by publisher Mortimer Zuckerman.
By the late 1980s, it was clear that the newspaper had lost some of its luster; in 1982 the Daily News reverted to its earlier name, and on October 30th the front page featured what would become its most famous headline: “FORD TO WORLD: DROP DEAD.” The paper was widely mocked for this headline, which depicted President Gerald Ford with the Statue of Liberty’s middle finger in his hand.
In order to increase revenue, many newspapers publish classified advertising in addition to their regular news and sports articles. A staff member responsible for arranging and selling advertising is often known as the classified ads sales manager or director. Weekly newspapers often have more than one of these employees, and the number may vary depending on the size of the newspaper’s circulation area.
Most weekly newspapers have at least one staff reporter who is responsible for writing sports and other local news. This person may also write obituaries and news releases announcing upcoming events. Most of these newspapers also have a circulation manager who keeps track of subscribers (this may range from only a couple hundred to tens of thousands of people).
In addition, some weekly newspapers have part-time staff writers and freelance reporters. These people are called stringers, and they may be paid on a per-story basis. Unlike full-time staff members, stringers are usually not assigned a particular beat, so they cover all of the news in the area they serve. This allows the weekly newspaper to cover breaking news in a timely manner. Most of these papers also have a family news section that includes announcements such as births, engagements, weddings and landmark birthdays and anniversaries. Some of these newspapers have also been designated as the official newspaper for a municipality or other government body, so they receive public notices such as lawsuits and foreclosures/property repossessions. These public notices are a major source of income for the weekly newspapers.