In the late eighteen century the radical press emerged and although they didn’t obtain significant advertising support, the radical newspaper were independent of government and political groupings in parliament. They became autonomous from the state through financial support other than advertising. The government tried to use legalities to keep the radical press down. The authorities had no real control as often as the libel prosecutions were made more people brought the paper.
The newspaper stamp duty and taxes on paper and advertisement increased once again the battle of the classes (upper and lower) was at hand by raising the cover price and restricting the ownership of the newspaper. The stamp duty was increased by 266 percent between 1789 and 1815. In order to make it harder for the radical newspaper to pay the stamp duty tax there was also an additional security system.
Weeklies had to register their paper and place a financial bonds of between £200-£300. The Stamp Duty Tax was now named “Tax on Knowledge, because the lower class people were having to pay such a high price in order to obtain information of worlds events that was readily available to the middle and upper class people.
It’s true to say that the government’s reliance on taxes and securities as a way of containing the radical press worked for some time. They (radical press) started a victim’s fund for the families of the people imprisoned for the selling of unstamped newspapers. The government found it fit to confiscate printers of unstamped papers, supplies of paper were intercepted, seller of underground papers were jailed at least 1,130 cases of selling unstamped newspapers were prosecuted in London alone during 1830-6. The radical press sales went to great heights and in 1836 the government was forced to concede defect. Unstamped press had a readership of 2 million, which was more than of the stamped newspaper.
Bridgett Brown 16/12/02
MEDIA STUDIES
ASSIGNMENT 1
The second key development, which I will be analysing, is the Price War of the Broadsheets newspapers. This began in 1993 between rival papers such as the Times. The cover price was reduced from 45p to 30p, and then in June 1994 the price was reduced yet again from 30p to 20p.
The Times newspaper increased it’s reader by selling the paper at such a low price, other papers followed suit. This was not such a good idea for the Daily Telegraph or the Independent, as the lowering of the cover price of their newspaper only to have gained a considerate loss. The Guardian stood firm and kept the cover price at 50p. The only logical solution to stay at the top is putting money into the company’s investment and interest of the paper.
With a distinctive and innovative product, development and consistently breaking big stories. During which time the paper increased its circulation, remained commercially successful and achieved critical acclaim, for both quality journalism, and the innovation consistently followed by its competitions. This is obviously what has kept the Guardian at the forefront of the broadsheets for such a long time. One of the Guardians brack through came about when it covered the story of the MP Jonathon Atkins and the sleaze revelations that brought down Neil Hamilton. Not forgetting the wonderful coverage of the New York September 11th tragedy.
The Guardian continues as a liberal campaiaing voice of the Middle Classes.
Bridgett Brown 16/12/02
