The World's First Newspapers May Have Appeared in Medieval China - Medievalists.net

During the Song Dynasty, printed bulletins and news sheets circulated widely in China, covering politics, military affairs, and court scandals. Official bulletins called chaobao and private, often illegal publications called xiaobao emerged in the eleventh century and became especially popular during the Southern Song period. Their growth followed late tenth-century creation of an information department in the Northern Song, which collected and disseminated official information such as policies and appointments. After the Northern Song fell and the Southern Song capital moved to Hangzhou, these efforts expanded. Hangzhou’s large, educated population and strong demand for government information supported a major newspaper culture. Printing advances, including moveable type, made publication easier.

"During the Song Dynasty, official bulletins and privately produced news sheets created what some historians consider the world's first newspaper culture. Research carried out by Yangming He of Zhejiang University traces two forms of newspapers that emerged in the eleventh century, and would become extremely popular during the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279). The first were official bulletins, known as chaobao, while the second were private, and often illegal, publications, called xiaobao. Both reached wide audiences who were eager to know what was happening with the Chinese government and other events around the country."

"The development of these newspapers can be traced back to the late tenth century, when the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) created an 'information department' that would collect and disseminate official information, such as new government policies and appointments. They would create the first chaobao, which translates as 'court paper'. With the fall of that dynasty and the establishment of the Southern Song Dynasty in Hangzhou, these efforts expanded even further."

"The conditions at Hangzhou would put it in a good position to become the world's first centre for newspapers and journalism. As it became the capital for the Southern Song, the city would have a rapid rise in population, reaching as many as two million residents. It is believed that Hangzhou was the largest city in the world for all of the thirteenth century. Many of the people who lived there were well-educated and looking for work in the government, and would be seeking as much information as they could about the inner workings of the dynasty."

"Moreover, the printing industry in China had become even more prominent after the invention of moveable type in the mid-eleventh century. It became easier to publish materials - allo"

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