In, “The Evolution of Print Culture and the Libels of Public Discourse,” the author discusses print, which allowed the evolution of petitions and other information to evolve into something unique. Now, individuals were able to create publications not only on a small scale, but nationwide. Thus, a political culture was born. This was good and bad. Some people saw print as fostering and provoking abuse of language, allowing the spread of libel, where people would use print less to inform and persuade, and more to mislead and abuse (p.223). Censorship was less common than refutation following publication. This trend was common, as more people began doing their own policing of what they read, and instead people began to refute and umpire the information that was printed in many publications on the newsstand.
Another common trend that began to arise because of the new print culture was the periodical. This innovation arose as the scale of what could be created using the press increased. As the popularity of pamphlets increased and controversial literature soared, so too did te means by which prints were able to distribute literature on a much broader scale. Thus, the pamphlet, being versatile, was expanded and innovated into the more modern news periodical. Examples included The London Gazette. In the 1700s there were 18 periodicals in London. London also featured an evening newspaper, 15 bi-weekly printings and two triweekly printings. This trend continued until 1723 where there were 24 newspapers being launched regularly, in addition to the growth in periodicals (p. 227) showing that not only were periodicals gaining in popularity, but so too were news and news publications. Reader demand suggested that news was hot because it was cheap and could cater to specific markets. Commonly sought after publications included The Post Boy, The Examiner, The Rehearsal and relate publications which featured Tory perspectives; others were more moderate or impartial (p. 228). Readers could find a genre that they liked, while presses could also publish a letters or opinion section and include reader comments to boost reader interest and readership.
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Market forces were also changing; books could be hawked like any other material, only more so when they worked as political forces. Coffee houses soon began to emerge like clubs, where people could gather together in a new form of culture or society, for meetings which some considered unprofitable, and others considered opportunities to speak evil of persons in places where any halfwit could much do the same, with or without printed material. Nonetheless, the printing press played a significant role in a new form of sociability in society, from the 18th century on. It was noted for enhancing the libel of elections, and assisting in creating a reputation of power for others who had a reputation that preceded them. For most pamphlets and other material were used as a means for pushing the boundaries of speech. Printed material was highly political in nature; many feared the process for its use as a tool that could be used to mislead, defame, and stretch the statutory limits of public discourse (p.257). The printed word could now be used to carry politician’s words, true or not, from one section of the country to another. Corrupted political thinking or ideals could also be carried by message from one end of the country to another. Manuscripts were no longer necessary when printed pamphlets could easily be pushed in coffee houses and other communal gatherings. A pamphlet could easily be used to disclaim the credibility of another political candidate. Thus, the printed press became a very powerful tool, if not always a wisely used tool, in early history.
