Saturday Night claimed to be "A free and fearless paper with the cream of the news." It appears to have been a campaign organ of J. R. Bennett. Its contents were devoted to national politics and opposed Squires, Coaker and the Daily Mail.
"Designed especially for the Outports", the Semi-weekly Chronicle had the same content and editorial policy as the Morning Chronicle.
The Sentinel published domestic and foreign news, shipping news, legislative proceedings, poetry, serial fiction and letters to the editor. The prospectus promised the paper would promote the interests of the mercantile community and maintain a commercial point of view, but the Sentinel was politically independent in most matters and moderately Liberal in outlook. It supported the temperance movement and published news of all religious denominations. In 1840, the paper caused a minor stir by endorsing James Douglas over Lawrence O'Brien in a controversial St. John's election. Spry closed the Sentinel down in October 1845 and started the Mercury and General Advertiser three months later.
The Shoreline was established because "there is a need for a paper that will cover local news that is considered to be unimportant by the larger news gathering organization." (May 9, 1989). It publishes letters to the editor, local and provincial news, sports, social news and advertisements.
The Signal was published by locked out and striking Evening Telegram employees during the Evening Telegram strike of 1979 . Besides publishing strike and labour news, it offered rich local news coverage, sports, advertisements and columns by the strikers and their supporters.
The Skipper published news of Paradise, Bell Island, Mount Pearl and Conception Bay. Features carried included club news, town council reports, school news, local sports, church schedules, advice on parenting, and a crime report. Editorials treated the usual local issues such as road conditions, litter, abandoned vehicles, snow removal and the importance of voting.
The Southern Gazette publishes news of the Burin Peninsula, regional sports, social, club and church news, advertisements, and commentary on local, provincial and national issues. Each issue usually includes original editorials and reprints of editorials from other newspapers in the Robinson-Blackmore chain.
The first issues of the Southern Post , "The Voice of Kilbride, Goulds and the Southern Shore" included news of that region, an advice column, local sports and editorials. The contents of the first issues indicated a possible Tory bias, having included an editorial which severely criticised Premier Brian Tobin, excerpts of an uncomplimentary article from the satirical magazine Frank on Liberal MP Jean Payne, and congratulatory messages from Progressive-Conservative politicians. The publisher and editor formerly worked at the Sunday Express and the Evening Telegram.
The Southern Shore Courier was intended to "to serve primarily a rural section of Newfoundland, the Southern Shore, which, it is understood, has not been undertaken hithertofore" (May 19, 1960). Published on newsprint in a tabloid format, it carried original regional news stories, personal and club news, songs, poetry, sports, stories, a "sportsman's corner", a women's column and advertisements.
According to a note in the microfilm copy of this paper: "Only 3 issues of this newspaper ever appeared. The publisher, John P. Harvey & Son, paid the editor, Herbert Cranford, to prepare the copy for each issue, which would then be printed and distributed along the Southern Shore. For each issue Mr. Cranford received $50.00."
The Southern Shore Weekly published community and personal news, a lot of church and religious news , television listings, recipes, and selected provincial news, usually involving crime and accidental deaths. The unknown editor expressed the frustrations of producing a paper of this sort: "The Southern Shore Weekly would like to thank the person who sent us the letter from fur her up the shore advising us not to publish the paper again as it is an insult to the Southern Shore. We would gladly return the price of the paper to them if they were kind enough to send us there name. or maybe that person would like the job of printing the paper , or becoming a news correspondence in their community or better still the job of proof reading." (Sept. 14, 1968)
The Sou'west Times is a tidy tabloid featuring news of the southwest coast, local description and history, personal and social news, a "literary corner" and a few advertisements, mostly of a public service nature.
The Spectator devoted much space to the temperance cause in its first issues. It also included war news, letters to the editor, market reports, filler material and advertisements. The paper accused the government of controlling the press and claimed itself to be free of party or corporate control
The Springdale News was a community newspaper for the northwestern region of the province. It suspended publication in 1970 and was replaced by the Green Bay News (later called the Nor'wester) in December 1971.
The St. John's Daily News carried foreign and domestic news, advertisements, and legislative proceedings. Strongly Conservative, the Daily News was a supporter of the rights of the Protestant population. Co-publisher Francis Winton left the paper over growing political differences with his brother Robert and founded a rival paper, the Day-Book. The Daily News supported Hoyles and the Reform Party and opposed Parsons, Kent and Responsible Government. The paper supported the Carter-Shea Administration and was strongly in favour of Confederation. It opposed Charles Fox Bennett's anti-Confederates who defeated Carter in 1869. The main opponents of the News were, at first, the Newfoundlander, Patriot, Express, and Day-Book, and its successor, the Morning Chronicle and, later, the Courier. The St. John's Daily News was suspended for two years and reemerged in 1872 as the St. John's News, later known as the North Star.
The Daily Star contained domestic and foreign news, sports, poetry, fiction, advertisements and other typical features. It was started by H. M. Mosdell and R. Dowden, both of whom were formerly connected with the Fishermen's Advocate. The Advocate claimed it was funded by a few Water Street merchants "in the hope of using it as an anti-Confederate paper in the event of the matter becoming a live issue"(50). The sole purpose of the Daily Star for the first few years appeared to be to assail W. F. Coaker and the Fishermen's Advocate. The Advocate retaliated by publishing a column called "Mosdell's Boomerangs" which quoted Mosdell's earlier statements of praise for the man and his cause. The Star supported the Squires government and stopped attacking Coaker in about 1919, lashing out instead at A. B. Morine and C. J. Fox.
The St. John's Free Press contained domestic and foreign news, shipping news, court proceedings, public notices, poetry and advertisements. The editorials encouraged the development of the colony's natural resources, supported the railway, and opposed Confederation.
The Star and Conception Bay Journal published local, domestic and foreign news, legislative and court proceedings, shipping and fishing news, public notices, advertisements, poetry, correspondence and editorials. The Star was Protestant and Conservative in policy, siding with the merchant class and opposing the Liberal Party. Burton moved to St. John's in 1840 and started the Star and Newfoundland Advocate.
The Star and Conception Bay Semi-weekly Advertiser published domestic and foreign news, legislative and court proceedings, poetry, serial fiction, advertisements and other features. The paper did not contain much editorial commentary although co-publisher A. A. Parsons unsuccessfully contested the 1873 election as an anti-Confederate candidate and supporter of C. F. Bennett.
The Star and Conception Bay Weekly Reporter seems to be the successor to the Star and Conception Bay Semi-weekly Advertiser although A. A. Parsons was no longer involved in it. It had the same content as the earlier publication and was somewhat more outspoken politically, opposing the Carter administration and the railway.
The Star and Newfoundland Advocate printed foreign and local news, legislative proceedings, agricultural, fishing and shipping news, poetry, fiction and advertisements. The paper was Conservative and Protestant editorially and supported the mercantile class. Burton was previously involved in the Star and Conception Bay Journal and was later to become more political as proprietor of the Telegraph and Political Review.
The Stephenville News published local, provincial, national and foreign news, comics, advertisements and editorials limited to supporting regional and local development.
The Suburban Mirror published news from communities on the Avalon Peninsula focusing on those outside of St. John's. It also contained entertainment, social commentary, business news, sports, television listings and advertisements.
Although no copy of the Sunday Express has been located, mention was made of it in the Fishermen's Advocate:(52)Last Sunday St. John's and Newfoundland were shocked by the appearance upon the street of boys selling a paper called the Sunday Express. This sheet is printed at the Plaindealer office and edited by one Dooley of Western Star fame ... Every pulpit in the Colony should resent the outrage and call upon the people to defend their Sabbath from such intrusion ... Men turned white with anger as they beheld boys parading the streets offering the paper for sale as the people proceeded to Church. Newfoundland is not America and this Dooley will realize before many weeks.
The Sunday Express published local, provincial and national news, sports, history, entertainment, social and political commentary, advertisements and other features. Started on a weekly basis to test the market for a possible competitor to St. John's only daily, the Evening Telegram, the Express won national recognition as "the best little newspaper in Canada." (53) The Express broke the Mount Cashel story and later lost their government advertising because of their negative coverage of a provincially-funded greenhouse venture. The paper folded due to decreased advertising revenue during the economic recession.
July 15, 2008
Suzanne Ellison