Compared with almost all developing countries and even a few developed countries, the Indian press is very free. In 2001, India had 45,974 newspapers, including 5364 daily newspapers published in over 100 languages. The largest number of newspapers were published in Hindi (20,589), followed by English (7,596), Marathi (2,943), Urdu (2,906), Bengali (2,741), Gujarati (2,215), Tamil (2,119), Kannada (1,816), Malayalam(1,505) and Telugu (1,289). The Hindi daily press has a circulation of over 23 million copies, followed by English with over 8 million copies. There are several major publishing groups in India, the most prominent among them being the Times of India Group, the Indian Express Group, the Hindustan Times Group, Essel Group, The Hindu group, the Anandabazar Patrika Group, the Sakshi Group, the Malayala Manorama Group, the Mathrubhumi group, the Kerala Kaumudi group, the Sahara group, the Bhaskar group, and the Dainik Jagran group.
The history of media in India is coloured by the colonial experience. William Bolts, an ex-employee of the British East India Company attempted to start the first newspaper in India in 1776. Bolts had to beat a retreat under the disapproving gaze of the Court of Directors of the Company.
Bengal
The Hickey's Bengal Gazette or the Calcutta General Advertiser was started by James Augustus Hickey in 1780. The Gazette, a two-sheet newspaper, specialised in writing on the private lives of the Sahibs of the Company. He dared even to mount scurrillious attacks on the Governor-General, Warren Hastings', wife, which soon landed "the late printer to the Honourable Company" in trouble.
Hickey was sentenced to a 4 months jail term and Rs.500 fine, which did not deter him. After a bitter attack on the Governor-General and the Chief Justice, Hickey was sentenced to one year in prison and fined Rs.5,000, which finally drove him to penury. These were the first tentative steps towards independent journalism in India.
Calcutta (Kolkata)
B.Messink and Peter Reed were pliant publishers of the India Gazette, unlike their infamous predecessor. The colonial establishment started the Calcutta Gazette. It was followed by another private initiative the Bengal Journal. The Oriental Magazine of Calcutta Amusement, a monthly magazine made it four weekly newspapers and one monthly magazine published from Calcutta, now Kolkata.
Madras (Chennai)
The Madras Courier was started in 1785 in the southern stronghold of Madras, which is now called Chennai. Richard Johnson, its founder, was a government printer. Madras got its second newspaper when, in 1791, Hugh Boyd, who was the editor of the Courier quit and founded the Hurkaru. Tragically for the paper, it ceased publication when Boyd died within a year of its founding.
It was only in 1795 that competitors to the Courier emerged with the founding of the Madras Gazette followed by the India Herald. The latter was an "unauthorised" publication, which led to the deportation of its founder Humphreys. The Madras Courier was designated the purveyor of official information in the Presidency.
In 1878, The Hindu was founded, and played a vital role in promoting the cause of Indian independence from the colonial yoke. It's founder, Kasturi Ranga Iyengar, was a lawyer, and his son, K Srinivasan assumed editorship of this pioneering newspaper during for the first half of the 20th century. Today this paper enjoys the highest circulation in South India, and is among the top five nationally.
Bombay (Mumbai)
Bombay, now Mumbai, surprisingly was a late starter - The Bombay Herald came into existence in 1789. Significantly, a year later a paper called the Courier started carrying advertisements in Gujarati.
The first media merger of sorts: The Bombay Gazette, which was started in 1791, merged with the Bombay Herald the following year. Like the Madras Courier, this new entity was recognised as the publication to carry "official notifications and advertisements".
'A Chronicle of Media and the State', by Jeebesh Bagchi in the Sarai Reader 2001 is a timeline on the role of the state in the development of media in India for more than a century.
Bagchi divides the timeline into three 'ages'. The Age of Formulation, which starts with the Indian Telegraph Act in 1885 and ends with the Report of the Sub-Committee on Communication, National Planning Committee in 1948.
Post colonial journalism
The Age of Consolidation that follows stretches from 1951, with the extension of the Indian Telegraph Act to the whole of India and ends with the promulgation of the "Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act" in 1985. The current age is the Age of Uncertainty, which began in 1989 with the introduction of the Prasar Bharati (Broadcasting Corporation of India) Bill.
Two News Agencies
Press Trust of India (PTI) and United News of India (UNI) are the two primary Indian news agencies. The former was formed after it took over the operations of the Associated Press of India and the Indian operations of Reuters soon after independence on August 27, 1947. PTI is a non-profit cooperative of the Indian newspapers.
UNI began its operations on March 21, 1961, though it was registered as a company in 1959 itself.
Popular non-English dailies in urban India
- Eenadu (Telugu - http://www.eenadu.net/)
- Andhrajyothy (Telugu - http://www.andhrajyothy.com/)
- General (Malayalam - http://www.generaldaily.com/)
- Prajavani (Kannada - http://www.prajavani.net/)
- Kannada Prabha (Kannada - http://www.kannadaprabha.com/)
- Samyuktha Karnataka (Kannada - http://www.samyukthakarnataka.com/)
- Udayavani (Kannada - www.udayavani.com/)
- Vijaya Karnataka (Kannada - www.vijaykarnatakaepaper.com/)
- The Stageman (English - www.thestageman.com/)
- Sanjevani (Kannada - http://www.Sanjevani.com/)
- Amar Ujala (Hindi)[1]
- Anandabazar patrika (Bengali) [2]
- Dainik Bhaskar (Hindi; leader in 2005, second highest circulation in 2006[1])
- Dainik Aikya (Marathi; Oldest and largest selling daily from Satara,Maharahstra) (http://www.dainikaikya.com/)
- Dainik Asam (Assamese; premier daily published from Dibrugarh and Guwahati in Assam.)
- Dainik Jagran (Hindi; highest circulation among dailies[1])
- Dinakaran (Tamil)
- Dina Thandi (Daily Thanthi, Tamil daily with 14 editions and a circulation of 790,900)
- Sakshi (Telugu daily with more than 24 editions and a circulation that is closer to 14 lakhs.)
- Divya Bhaskar (Gujarati)
- Gujarat Samachar (Gujarati)
- India Today (weekly; Hindi edition most popular)
- Lokmat (Marathi)
- Malayala Manorama (Malayalam)
- Mathrubhumi (Malayalam)
- Kerala Kaumudi (Malayalam)
- Deepika (Malayalam)
- Nav-Bharat (Hindi; published from Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra}
- Sambhaav (Gujarati)
- Tamil Murasu Tamil Daily Evening News Paper
- Newsy (English)
- Newsy (Urdu)
- eenadu telugu daily
Popular English dailies in urban India in 2003 and News websites
- Punjab News
- The Times of India (7.05 million readers, IRS 2005)
- Hindustan Times
- The Hindu
- The Telegraph
- Deccan Chronicle
- The Assam Tribune
- The Asian Age
- The Economic Times
- The New Indian Express
- Mid-Day
- Deccan Herald
- Indian Express
- The Tribune
- Further information: News sources India
Editorials from English dailies
Note: NRS (National Readership Survey) and IRS (Indian Readership Survey) are monitoring surveys - and they don't always agree.