History of newspapers in California
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The history of newspapers in California dates back to 1846, with the first publication of
History
The first newspaper published by Americans in California was
Los Angeles's first paper, La Estrella de Los Angeles or The Los Angeles Star, began publishing in May, 1851, also half in Spanish (until 1855). The Southern Californian began in July, 1854, and an all Spanish paper, El Clamor Publico, began competing for Spanish-speaking readers in June 1855. San Diego's first paper was the Herald, established in May 1851. Before 1860, California had 57 newspapers and periodicals serving an average readership of 290,000.
The
The oldest continuously operated paper on the
The Mountain Messenger, located in Sierra County, is California's oldest weekly publication, established in 1852. The adjudicated paper continues to be published on Thursday each week in Downieville by Carl Butz, who bought the paper from long-time editor Donald Russell in 2020.
James King of William began publishing the Daily Evening Bulletin in San Francisco in October, 1855 and built it into the highest circulation paper in San Francisco. He criticized a city supervisor named James P. Casey, who on the afternoon when the story about him had run in the paper, shot and mortally wounded King. Casey was lynched by the early vigilante committee. The Morning Call was established and began publishing in December 1856, and later merged with the Bulletin to become the long running Call-Bulletin.
The
During the American Civil War outspoken criticism of the federal government by the editor of The Los Angeles Star led to the Star being banned from the mails, and the arrest of its editor for treason. Banned from the use of the U.S. Mail in 1864 it published its last issue in October 1864. When the Los Angeles Star ceased publication its press and equipment were sold to pro Union Phineas Banning who started printing the Wilmington Star; the paper soon changed its name to the Wilmington Journal. In 1868, the paper announced that since Los Angeles already had a strong pro Union paper in the Los Angeles Weekly Republican, (published from 1867 to 1879), there was no longer any need for continuing publication of the Wilmington Journal.
The
In 1887, young William Randolph Hearst took over his father's Daily Examiner which became the flagship of his national chain.
Other cities have had their own long surviving papers, including the
On October 1, 1910, a
Newspapers for minority communities
The oldest African-American newspaper, still active in the 1930s, was the California Eagle. It appeared first in Los Angeles in 1879. The first French journals, the Californien and the Gazette Republicane both began in 1850, and were followed by the Courrier du Pacifique in 1852. Both the first German and first Italian papers, the California Demokrat (1852) and the Voce del Popolo (1859) were founded in San Francisco and had long runs. The Chinese in California have published many newspapers, the first was the Gold Hills News in 1854.