As the world’s first successful tabloid newspaper, the Daily News became famous for its terse headlines and stunning photographs. It won many Pulitzer Prizes and is widely considered to be one of the most influential newspapers in the country. The paper was founded in 1919 and is currently owned by Tribune Publishing, which also publishes the Chicago Tribune.
The New York Daily News is the largest-circulation newspaper in the United States. It was established in 1919 and is known for its sensational coverage of current events, often featuring crime stories. The newspaper has also won many awards for its photography and is well-known for its satirical cartoons. It has long competed with its rival, the New York Post, for readers.
During its early years, the newspaper had a strong conservative editorial stance and supported isolationism during World War II. By the 1980s, however, it shifted its ideological direction and is now seen as a moderately liberal alternative to the right-wing Post.
In addition to its print and online editions, the newspaper has a number of subsidiaries. These include television station WPIX, which still operates from the New York City headquarters of the newspaper; radio station WFAN-FM, which has been in operation since 2014 as a simulcast of its AM namesake; and website New York Daily News Online. The News at one time maintained local bureaus in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens, and shared offices at City Hall and within One Police Plaza with other news agencies.
While it sometimes adopts the more sensational tactics of its competitor, the Daily News is respected for its solid journalism and quality contributors. Some of its writers, past and present, have included Jimmy Breslin, Pete Hamill, William Reel, and Bill Gallo. It is also a major provider of sports coverage and has a popular “Voice of the People” letters section that allows its readers, called Voicers, to respond to other letter writers.
In recent years, the Daily News has focused on controversial issues such as gun violence and immigration. After the 2015 San Bernardino shooting, it ran a front page headline reading “GOD ISN’T FIXING THIS,” which received both praise and criticism. It has also criticised Republican politicians for offering empty platitudes rather than taking action in response to gun violence.
The newspaper has faced financial troubles in the past and at times came close to closure. It was almost closed twice in the early 1980s and again in the 1990s during a newspaper strike. In both instances, the newspaper’s owner at the time, millionaire Robert Maxwell, stepped in with financial assistance. Maxwell later died, and existing management kept the newspaper afloat until it was purchased in 1993 by Mort Zuckerman. Despite the newspaper’s decline, it remains a respected source of news and commentary for many readers. Death of the Daily News is a film about what happens when a major local newspaper dies and how its legacy continues to shape the media landscape.