Wednesday Open Line


One of the saddest days in the history of American journalism occurred on this date in 1981, in Washington, D.C., as the venerable newspaper, The Washington Star, printed its last edition after covering local and national news for 128 years. For much of its history, the Star was regarded as the national capital’s paper of record. That record remains accessible online in a digital archive containing every issue. The demise of The Washington Star was a prominent indicator of a downward trend in newspaper publishing. In 1900, there were over 2,200 daily papers in the U.S. By 1980, that figure had fallen to 1,745. Since then, about 350 more papers have shut down. You can find more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau, online at <www.census.gov>.