Abstract
A quick survey of the history of scholarly work on journalism history underscores the difference between the history of news - which is a long history, in which every human society can claim some part - and the history of journalism, which is a much shorter and more defined history. News acquired a normative role in democracies, first as a factor in the operation of public spheres, then as a resource for partisan competition in mass electoral democracies. The development of news technologies interacted with market factors to advance the commoditization and then mass production of news. Journalism, understood as a set of professional standards and practices, was produced at a moment during the industrialization of news systems, and might be seen originally as an explanation and legitimation of the business of news in modern capitalist societies, an ideology that spread globally along with western military power, commerce, wire services, and news organizations. But western professional journalism has long been challenged by other journalisms, including the journalisms of local, religious, social, and political movements and counterhegemonic journalisms associated with developing countries and the socialist bloc. By the late 20th century, journalism was also challenged by the postmodern moment and the rise of competition in media channels, intensified by the emergence of digital media.