The Press

Press, The 

the aggregate of mass periodical publications; newspapers and journals.

The term “the press” at first referred to general political periodical publications intended for the mass reader. Connected with this concept was the derivation of the term from the name of the mass newspaper, La Presse, first published in Paris in 1836. The French word presse, from the Latin presso (“I press”), reflected the basis of the printing process: the transfer of ink by pressing a form onto paper and the potential for the production of multiple copies. As periodicals developed and became diversified, groups of mass periodical publications were established for specialized purposes, such as the scholarly press; with specialized content, for example the sports press; and for a specialized readership, such as the young people’s press.