The Newspaper Wars of 1878
A Snohomish editor accuses a rival publication of blatant plagiarism, citing the biblical commandment against stealing.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The first number of the N. P. Times received. As expected, from the recognized ability and experience of Mr. Picket, its publisher, it presents an appearance second to but few journals on the coast. In fact, there is no room for criticism, except in one respect, where he has followed the bad custom, so prevalent on the Sound, of taking original descriptive matter from the STAR, without credit for the same. It costs a great amount of time and money to gather this information. We are glad to see our work so endorsed, as it is shown to be by the large amount copied; but courtesy requires that due credit should be given, and when this new journal starts out with two columns stolen from the STAR, in its first number, it is too much. Surely Mr. Picket is old enough to know the commandment: 'Thou shalt not steal.'
“Surely Mr. Picket is old enough to know the commandment: 'Thou shalt not steal.'”
Long before digital-age battles over content aggregation, local papers were fiercely protective of their original reporting. This 1878 grievance over 'stolen' columns highlights the enduring struggle to define and defend intellectual property in the local media ecosystem.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.