ABSTRACT

Newspapers have long been regarded as the medium of record in our society, reflecting social, commercial, and political events of a community. They have been considered a truthful account of important public events and reliable interpreter of their meaning. They have sometimes elevated ordinary events to levels of importance; if it was in the paper, then it had significance, not just for the persons involved-a family displaced by fire, a refugee receiving a scholarship, a proprietor closing a neighborhood business-but for the community at large.