Headlines in history: media between sensation and truth

Headlines in history: media between sensation and truth

What is happening here in the media landscape? On July 14, 2025, the book Breaking News - current events appeared in the press from 1648 to 2001 , which was written by historian Ursula Prutsch and the media scientist Klaus Zeyringer. In an exciting way, the two authors analyze original headlines and their historical effects, from the " Glorious Revolution " in Great Britain. shocking propaganda mugs in the First World War as well as the role of the Nazis in media reporting.

The exchange with the interlocutor Philipp Blom, who has initiated the questions about the last media reporting. How do the rapid distribution of news and the sensation of both newspapers and the audience affect society? The authors also bring up the reporting of French newspapers before the French Revolution and consider the media event of the devastating tsunamis from 1755 in Lisbon. A look back that stimulates to look at the present through the lens of the past.

the media in the change in time

The role of the media has changed enormously since the 17th century, as the book by Prutsch and Zeyringer impressively shows. What was perhaps sensational 300 years ago is now part of everyday life. According to Segu-geschichte.de, the examination of media history is not only important for historians, but also for society as a whole. It enables us to reflect on the media -technical possibilities and their effects on our information culture.

In the 19th and 20th centuries, various means of communication established themselves-including newspapers, books and even e-books. Topics such as freedom of the press, censorship and media change are still highly topical. This development is not only shown in the large number of formats, but also in the challenges that the media's obligation to provide information brings. The influence of digital technologies can be seen as a catalyst for change.

The digital revolution

Today's media are a reflection of social changes-what us bpb.de. It turns out that access to information through digital means such as the Internet, smartphones and social media has become considerably easier. But this progress also brings challenges. The quality of the reporting and the credibility of the information is often up for debate, a topic that has been taken up again and again in the numerous studies in recent years.

A good hand have a good hand when dealing with the media landscape requires more than ever critical thinking and active research. Today's variety of media formats adheres to us to think about the content we consume and to question their origins. And this is exactly where Prutsch and Zeyringer's book follows: it stimulates to think about the past and their teachings for the future. So it is not only a work on historical media events, but also an important contribution to the discussion about our current media use.