Journalism Milestones in the US

• Boston postmaster John Campbell published the Boston Newsletter on April 24, 1704. It was recognized as the first continuously published American newspaper. After the first brick was laid down, many publishers followed by launching their publications such as the Boston Gazette and the New England Courant.
  
  
• During the early years of journalism, many scholars characterized the press as being partisan, invective, and unrestraint. Historian Frank Luther Mott (1962) wrote that "Few papers were ably edited; they reflected the crassness of the American society of the times. Scurrility, assaults, corruption, blatancy were commonplace." Mott expressed his concern that "Journalism had grown too fast" (cited in Merrill 1995, 374).
  
  
• In the early 19th century, the Penny Press concept was developed among the journalists. This philosophy believed the people should have a realistic view of society, that abuses should be exposed, that the first duty of the press is news, not political support, and that local and human interest news is important.
  
  
• Another breakthrough in journalism was in the 20th century when telecommunication technology changed the face of traditional news coverage. Radio and television had become parts of the media that affected people's everyday life.
  
  
• While most journalists enjoyed exercising their freedom of expression freely, some professionals were concerned that the excessive use of freedom might have somewhat negative impacts on the society: invading the individual's privacy and practicing without responsibility to the public. In 1923, the American Society of Newspaper Editors created a set of professional ethic codes to be a guideline for journalists. According to these codes, journalists had to perform with responsibility to the general welfare, sincerity, truthfulness, impartiality, fair play, decency, and respect for the individual's privacy. The radio and television industry set up their own ethic codes in 1937 and 1952 respectively.
  
  
• In 1947, the Commission on Freedom of the Press raised the campaign for journalists to put greater emphasis on social responsibility than on individual's freedom of expression. This movement changed the concept of the press in the U.S., from the libertarian theory to the social responsibility theory (Siebert et al.1956).

References:
John Merrill, 1995.Global Journalism. Longman: White Plains, NY.
Fred Siebert et al., 1956. Four Theories of the Press. University of Illinois, USA.