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The Printers, Rogues, and Radicals Who Invented the American Newspaper
by Alex Wright
A sweeping history of America's first media revolution: the rise of the newspaper, and the transformation of a fledgling republic into the world's first information superpower.
No society had ever generated so much ink and paper in so little time. Between the Revolutionary War and the dawn of the twentieth century, the number of American newspapers increased five hundredfold. In Empire of Ink, Alex Wright tells the story of how an unruly young democracy found its voice—shaped by the interplay of new technologies, bold public policies, and a distinctly American zeal for free expression that unleashed the greatest outpouring of print the world had ever seen.
It was a wild, boisterous time—populated by gunslinging editors, tramp printers, zealous reformers, brilliant inventors, and literal snake-oil salesmen. Together, they transformed journalism, built a new industry, and helped forge the nation's character. By century's end, this freewheeling press had begun to give way to news syndicates, wire services, and corporate interests. Wealthy media barons seized on new technologies and economies of scale to consolidate power—shaping the mass media that would define the twentieth century.
Vividly bringing a pivotal chapter in American history to life, Empire of Ink reveals how the nation's age-old struggles over truth, technology, and power continue to echo into today's digital age.
"Engaging...A fresh, often startling account of newspapers' early years." ―Kirkus Reviews
"This beautifully written book takes us beyond the familiar New York papers and editors to a whole continent bursting with the thirst for news. It does full justice to the technological advances that made this possible, while introducing a gaggle of little-known personalities—brave, imaginative, and sometimes unscrupulous. A wonderful read." ―Andrew Pettegree, coauthor of The Library
"Empire of Ink makes clear why newspapers deserve a prime seat at the table of American history. Alex Wright deftly captures the freewheeling cast of characters, the experimentation in style and form, and the partisan fighting that shaped the spirit of nineteenth-century journalism." ―Joseph M. Adelman, author of Revolutionary Networks
This information about Empire of Ink was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Alex Wright is the author of Cataloging the World and Glut. A writer and designer, he has led digital projects for Google News and the New York Times and holds a PhD in design from Carnegie Mellon. He divides his time between Brooklyn and the Hudson Valley.
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