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Media

Children cluster around Santa in this 1903 illustration.

Christmas Wasn’t Always the Kid-Friendly Gift Extravaganza We Know Today

How a once-raucous holiday became a time of childlike wonder and beribboned consumerism

An estimated 750 million people worldwide tuned in to the July 1981 ceremony.

Based on a True Story

14 Fun Facts About Princess Diana’s Wedding

The royal nuptials—and the couple’s tumultuous relationship—feature heavily in season four of Netflix’s “The Crown”

Baseball star Babe Ruth in his last year with the Boston Red Sox in 1919, one year after he survived the Spanish flu.

Covid-19

When Babe Ruth and the Great Influenza Gripped Boston

As Babe Ruth was emerging as baseball’s great slugger in 1918, he fell sick with the flu

Though much has changed since 1918, the sentiments shared in writings from this earlier pandemic are likely to resonate with modern readers.

Covid-19

What We Can Learn From 1918 Influenza Diaries

These letters and journals offer insights on how to record one’s thoughts amid a pandemic

Charles Lindbergh, Walter Winchell and Franklin D. Roosevelt (L to R) are among the public figures fictionalized in Philip Roth's The Plot Against America.

Based on a True Story

The True History Behind ‘The Plot Against America’

Philip Roth’s classic novel, newly adapted by HBO, envisions a world in which Charles Lindbergh wins the 1940 presidential election

Silhouette of Horace Greeley made by profile artist William H. Brown in 1872, the year Greeley died. Greeley changed journalism in America, considering himself to be a “Public Teacher” who exerted “a resistless influence over public opinion … creating a community of thought of feeling … giving the right direction to it.”

How Horace Greeley Turned Newspapers Legitimate and Saved the Media From Itself

The 19th-century publisher made reform-minded, opinion-driven journalism commercially viable

Depictions of Madame Yale often suggested that she had a hand in crafting her concoctions.

Madame Yale Made a Fortune With the 19th Century’s Version of Goop

A century before today’s celebrity health gurus, an American businesswoman was a beauty with a brand

After two eclipse expeditions confirmed Einstein's theory of general relativity, the scientist became an international celebrity.

One Hundred Years Ago, Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity Baffled the Press and the Public

Few people claimed to fully understand it, but the esoteric theory still managed to spark the public’s imagination

The newspapers on sale at this New York City newspaper stand likely contained some of the same comics and articles, thanks to the advent of syndication in the early 20th century.

How Syndicated Columns, Comics and Stories Forever Changed the News Media

For many Americans, their “local” paper would soon look much like the paper read halfway across the country

An 1897 poster critiquing the McKinley administration set during the Fourth of July shows the inherent danger of do-it-yourself fireworks.

The 1900s Movement to Make the Fourth of July Boring (but Safe)

One activist thought celebrating the founding of the nation would be better spent as a “a quiet day under the trees”

Central Park as seen in 1990, a year after the attack that put the "Central Park Five" in the headlines

How Central Park’s Complex History Played Into the Case Against the ‘Central Park Five’

The furor that erupted throughout New York City cannot be disentangled from the long history of the urban oasis

"We didn’t just want to view Weimar from its ending,” exhibition curator Simone Erpel says

What the Weimar Republic Can Teach Us About Modern Democracy

A Berlin exhibition draws on some 250 artifacts to explore questions of democracy past and present

Television remains dominant across all mediums, with 49 percent of Americans surveyed citing it as their most-frequented news source

Pew Finds Social Media Has Surpassed Print Newspapers as Americans’ Main News Source

The research center says 20 percent of Americans rely on sites like Facebook, Twitter for news updates, while 16 percent cite print as main news source

Promising Peanut Allergy Treatment Could Become Available in the Near Future

A new study has found that gradually exposing children to peanut protein could increase their tolerance—though the treatment does not offer a complete cure

Mildred Gillars, a.k.a. Axis Sally, in custody at U.S. Counter Intelligence HQ, Berlin, 1946.

‘Axis Sally’ Brought Hot Jazz to the Nazi Propaganda Machine

The voice of Nazi Germany’s U.S. radio disinformation campaigns would have had great success in the media landscape of today

The magazine taught its readers to never swallow what they’re served.

In Its Heyday, Mad Magazine Was a Lot More Than Silly Jokes

The publication taught its readers how to be healthy skeptics—a lesson that media consumers need more today than ever

New Research

New Study Finds Fake News Spreads Faster and Deeper Than Verified Stories on Twitter

Looking at 126,000 stories sent by ~3 million people, researchers found that humans, not bots, were primarily responsible for the spread of disinformation

Nine Innovators to Watch in 2018

Meet a group of trailblazers in medicine, education, art, transportation, artificial intelligence and more

Robert La Follette

World War I: 100 Years Later

Fake News and Fervent Nationalism Got a Senator Tarred as a Traitor During WWI

The fiery progressive Robert La Follette responded with a classic defense of free speech in wartime

Civil Rights activist Grady O'Cummings talking with a group of boys. O'Cummings later faked his own death to avoid threats made by members of the Black Panthers against him and his family.

These Never-Before-Seen Photos From “The New York Times” Offer a New Glimpse Into African-American History

The editors of the new book, “Unseen” talk about recognizing the paper of record’s biases

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