This Day in History, 1835: New York Herald

[mabfan]

On May 6, 1835, the first issue of the New York Herald newspaper was published by James Gordon Bennett, Sr. (1795-1872). Under his son, James Gordon Bennett, Jr. (1841–1918), the paper financed Henry Morton Stanley's expedition into Africa to find David Livingstone.

On October 4, 1887, Bennett Jr. launched The New York Herald's European edition in Paris, France. Following Gordon Bennett's death, the New York Herald was merged with its bitter rival, the New York Tribune, in 1922. In 1959, the New York Herald Tribune and its European edition were sold to John Hay Whitney, the then U.S. ambassador to Britain. In 1966 the New York paper ceased publication, and the Washington Post and the New York Times acquired joint control of the Paris paper, renaming it the International Herald Tribune. Now owned 100% by the New York Times, the paper remains an important and influential English language paper, printed at 26 sites around the world and for sale in more than 180 countries.

On a personal note, my Dad was a long-time newspaperman, and my brothers and I all received James Gordon Bennett Scholarships when we were in college.

And on an amusing note, Bennet, Jr., was somewhat flamboyant and erratic. He scandalized New York society by arriving late and drunk at a party being given by his fiance's parents and then urinating into their living room fireplace, in full view of the hosts. Which is probably why his father sent him to Paris.

For more information:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Herald
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Gordon_Bennett%2C_Jr.

Comments

[docorion.livejournal.com]

Growing up in Holland, we received the IHT delivered every day. I still think of it as The Paper, in the same way as most Americans (on the East Coast, anyway) think of the NYT as The Paper. It's the news source of record, for me. When I graduated from high school, I took a train trip around Europe with a couple of friends, and we would read the local papers to see what they said, but read the IHT to get the news.

[mabfan.livejournal.com]

You grew up in Holland? I did not know that.

I'm glad to see that my This Day in History entry had relevance for someone else.

[jenwrites.livejournal.com]

He scandalized New York society by arriving late and drunk at a party being given by his fiance's parents and then urinating into their living room fireplace, in full view of the hosts. Which is probably why his father sent him to Paris.

Where that kind of behavior was far less scandalous ;)

[mabfan.livejournal.com]

Although apparently he scandalized Europe too!

[jenwrites.livejournal.com]

*gasp!* What did he do? Sodomize pigeons?

[mabfan.livejournal.com]

From Wikipedia:

"Gordon Bennett scandalized many in the elite societies of New York, London and Paris with his always flamboyant and sometimes erratic behaviour. He had a horde of women at his disposal, using them for entertainment, not marrying until the age of seventy-three when for business reasons he wed Baroness de Reuter, a daughter of Paul Reuter, the founder of the famous Reuters news agency."

So apparently his promiscuous behavior scandalized Europe.

[jenwrites.livejournal.com]

It must have been "Old Yurp" instead of "New Yurp." ;)