A daily tabloid newspaper founded in 1919, the New York Daily News was the first successful American tabloid and at one point was the most widely read newspaper in the world. The newspaper is known for its bold journalism, commitment to New York City and its robust digital presence. The Daily News focuses on breaking news, in-depth investigations, politics, sports, entertainment and culture. It is also renowned for its large and prominent photographs and New York City exclusives.
The Daily News is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and is a Pulitzer Prize winner for editorial writing (E.R. Shipp’s pieces on race and welfare, Mike McAlary’s coverage of police brutality against Haitian immigrant Abner Louima) and for its advocacy for civil rights and the First Amendment. In the 1990s, the paper began publishing a monthly African-American insert, BET Weekend, which by the end of the decade had a circulation in excess of a million across fifteen markets nationwide.
In the early 2000s, the Daily News shifted its focus somewhat from its traditional liberal polemics to a more investigative and sometimes political reporting. This approach resulted in several high-profile cases against law enforcement agencies and politicians, including the convictions of New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani for lying about an anti-terrorism strategy and New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine for allowing his staff to accept campaign contributions from criminals. In the years following, the Daily News has continued to investigate and report on government corruption.
The newspaper has a relatively low bias overall, although it does lean slightly to the left in terms of editorial policy. Its bold headlines and aggressive style have helped it to maintain a large and loyal reader base. In recent years, it has also developed a more liberal voice, partly in response to the conservative polemics of its crosstown rival the New York Post. The Daily News often takes on crusades against current mayor and president, and its coverage has sometimes been too inflammatory to be deemed objective.
At the height of its success, the Daily News had a circulation of over a million copies a day and was the eleventh-highest-circulation newspaper in the United States. In the 1980s, it was losing money and had to cut staff and other expenses, and the newspaper considered closing altogether. However, this would have cost the owners too much in severance pay and pensions.
In 2017, the Daily News was sold to Tronc, a media company that owns Tribune Publishing. The Daily News is headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey. Its newsroom closed in 2020. The Daily News is a leader in its coverage of breaking news and in-depth investigations, with a particular commitment to New York City. In addition to its award-winning print and online content, the Daily News has a rich heritage in video journalism. Each Daily News article contains comprehension and critical thinking questions for students. These are located in the “Background” and “Resources” sections of each story.