During the last third of the nineteenth century a fierce rivalry among party ‘organs, ’ sectarian dailies, upstart ‘people’s journals, ’ and revamped ‘quality’ papers fashioned a popular journalism for a large, chiefly urban audience in Canada. By the end of the 1890s, the number of daily and weekly editions of these newspapers exceeded the count of Canadian families. The country’s first mass medium has arrived.

Professor Rutherford charts the growth of the daily press, describing personalities and events. He surveys the cultural prerequisites for mass communication – the growth of the city, of urban publics, and of mass literacy – and looks at the personnel, business routines, and worries of the new industry, showing how the news and views, ads and entertainment of the press changed as publishers competed for increased circulation. He also analyses the mythologies purveyed by the popular press across Canada, defines the press’s connection with the ‘establishment, ’ and shows how daily papers suited the libertarian model of a ‘free press.’

This volume is a novel addition to our literature on nation building, revealing the significant role played by the popular press in the making of Victorian society and the shaping of the twentieth century.