The Sydney Morning Herald will celebrate its 190th anniversary on Monday, April 19, making it one of the oldest continuously printed metropolitan newspapers in the world.
A souvenir wrap-around will mark the achievement, showing how the Herald has forged a connection with generations of Sydneysiders with its unique lens on reporting the life and times of the Emerald City.
Across the week, there will also be special features throughout the paper and its inserts including Good Food, and the milestone will also be celebrated at an event held at the Sydney Opera House.
Long before the first car drove down Pitt Street, or troops left for the Boer War and both World Wars, and when Sydney’s tallest building was the city’s St James Church, Sydneysiders turned to The Sydney Herald for news of their city and its place in the world. The first edition rolled off the presses on April 18, 1831 when King William IV was ruling the British Empire and 70 years before Federation.
The wrap-around marking the 190th anniversary of The Sydney Morning Herald will be on sale Monday, April 19
Re-named The Sydney Morning Herald shortly after John Fairfax bought the publication in 1841, its continuous print puts the Herald alongside titles like the UK’s The Guardian (1821), The Daily Telegraph (1855) and The Times (1785), and the US’s New York Post (1801), The New York Times (1851) and Washington Post (1877) as one of the world’s oldest metro newspapers.
The Herald is now read by 9.4 million people across print and digital. Just as Sydney has evolved since 1831, so too has the Herald, with the business now financially driven by digital subscribers. More than 60% of revenue across Nine’s publishing assets now comes from readers digital subscriptions.
The first edition of The Sydney Herald, later branded The Sydney Morning Herald, on April 18, 1831
The one thing that has stayed consistent over 190 years of delivering news has been the Herald’s dedication to journalism. With countless investigations that have resulted in Royal Commissions, Inquiries, ICAC cases, and police/AFP charges, the Herald has ensured its journalism is key to growing subscribers and keeping Sydney informed.
Lisa Davies, editor of The Sydney Morning Herald, said: “It is mind boggling to reflect on what The Sydney Morning Herald journalists and photographers have witnessed and recorded over the past 190 years.
“The Herald has never been read by more people, from a broader cross-section of Australia. The media landscape is constantly adapting to changing revenue models, global headwinds and digital disruption but through it all we have focused on the stories, on doing our jobs, innovating and ensuring the Herald remains the trusted source of news our readers demand.
“As we celebrate the Herald’s rich heritage; its vital role in shaping Sydney and our voice in the most important national conversations, we want to draw on this history as we look forward. We must continue to drive and inform the future of our city, the direction of our nation and our place on the world’s stage.”
David Eisman, director, subscriptions and growth, said: “Our successful digital subscriptions and licensing strategy means that the Herald, along with our other mastheads, is well positioned to continue serving our readers with high quality Australian journalism at scale for years to come.”
Photography changed the face of newspapers and the way news is consumed. The Herald’s photographers have been documenting Sydney’s stories since the early 1900s
The Sydney Morning Herald will mark its 190th anniversary with a souvenir wrap around on Monday, April 19.