Presstime in paradise [electronic resource] : the life and times of the Honolulu Advertiser, 1856-1995 / George Chaplin.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Chaplin, George, 1914-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Honolulu advertiser.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (407 p.)

Place of Publication:

Honolulu : University of Hawai'i Press, 1998.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Since it first rolled off the presses in 1856, The Honolulu Advertiser has been an important force in reporting and shaping the news of Honolulu and, secondarily, the Hawaiian Islands. Established as The Pacific Commercial Advertiser, a four-page weekly, it was the first enduring non-government owned or subsidized newspaper published in the Hawaiian Kingdom. Under its first owner, the son of New England missionaries, the Advertiser became the most successful commercial English language newspaper in the Islands. The paper became a daily in 1882 and in 1921 changed its name to The Honolulu Advertiser. Now owned by Gannett Company, Inc., the Advertiser is one of the oldest newspapers still operating west of the Rockies. George Chaplin, editor-in-chief of the Advertiser from 1959 to 1986, has written a colorful and entertaining insider's account of nearly a century and a half of Advertiser history. He covers the legion of personalities that has worked for the Advertiser over the years: owners (from its first Island owner, Henry Whitney, to its last, the Thurston Twigg-Smith family), publishers, editors, reporters, political cartoonists, photographers, and pressroom people. He reports on issues and historical events that had a powerful impact on the Honolulu community and comments on the newspaper's position regarding each: the sensational Massie trial, the dilemma of Hawaii's Americans of Japanese ancestry during World War II, the labor movement and communism in the Islands, and statehood, among others. He also recalls the many political figures who have waged their media battles within the pages of the Advertiser.Presstime in Paradise is an illuminating and informative look at the internal operations of a newspaper and its relationship with a community that has both influenced it and been influenced by it. It adds significantly to the growing body of literature on the role of the free press in Hawaii.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Preface

Acknowledgments

Part I 1856-1880

1 A "Reliable Domestic Newspaper" Is Born

2 "New Type, a New Press, a New Building"

3 "Going to Sea without a Passport"

4 "We Shall Not Flinch from the Issue"

5 Amid the Press Battles, a Shocker

6 Praise and Presses, Letters and Lava

7 "No Opening Offered" for Mark Twain

8 "Scheme to Crush the Advertiser"

9 "Press Has All the Freedom It Could Desire"

Part II 1880-1898

10 "To Be Invariably Loyal to His Majesty"

11 "Laws of U.S. Are Good Enough for Hawaii"

Part III 1898-1931

12 An "Itching for Printer's Ink"

13 From Streetcars to Volcanoes

14 Laborers "Cannot Run These Islands"

15 "Blood Calls for Blood"

16 "Talking through the Air"

17 "Where America and Asia Meet"

Part IV 1931-1961

18 A Son Inherits the Publishership

19 Race, Murder, and the Press

20 Editorial Policy Gets "Help" from the Big Five

21 Research Fueled by "'Nippin' and 'Sippin'"

22 "If That's Anti-Japanese, Make the Most of It"

23 "Something's Going on out at Pearl"

24 The Battle to Salvage Circulation

25 A Blend of Photographers, Editors, and Managers

26 Fighting "Communism" and Farrington

27 An About-Face on Statehood

28 Sherman to Heloise: Gossip and Hints

29 Advertiser's Dilemma: Hope versus Reality

30 From War Service to Family Paper

31 Can a Reporter Protect a Source?

32 A New Hand on the Editorial Helm

33 The Saga of Sammy Amalu

34 An All-Out Try to Rescue the Paper

Part V 1961-1995

35 Twigg-Smith Takes Over as Publisher

36 Staff Talents Cover a Wide Spectrum

37 A Policy Shift from Conservatism

38 A Joint "Op," a Strike, and a Would-be Buyer

39 Historic Stamps, Art, and Journalism

40 Right-to-Print Hits Official Snag

41 Neighbor Islands Make News Too

42 Technology Brings a Host of Changes

43 Mayor Fasi's Battle with the Press

44 A New Publisher and a New Mood

45 Nearly a Century Ends in a Sale

Appendix

Notes

Selected Bibliography

Index

George Chaplin: Journalist and Community Leader

Notes:

"A latitude 20 book."

Includes bibliographical references (p. 373-375) and index.

ISBN:

0-8248-4357-6

0-585-32471-9

OCLC:

179109176