History and Introduction: Print media is one of the oldest and basic forms of mass communication. It includes newspapers, weeklies,magazines, monthlies and other forms of printed journals.A basic understanding of the print media is essential in the study of masscommunication.The contribution of print media in providing information and transfer of knowledge is remarkable. Even after the advent of electronic media, the print media has not lost its charm or relevance. Print media has the advantage of making a longer impact on the minds of the reader, with more in-depth reporting and analysis.
The Chinese were the first to invent the art of printing. They made wooden blocks to print letters.However, Block printing came to Europe by 1300. It is believed that Johannes Gutenburg of Germany had developed printing technology around 1439.Gutenburg also invented an oil-based ink for printing. He printed the Bible in 1450. It was in the Latin language and had 1282 pages .He used movable printing blocks for the book. The First Book Printed in India: Printing technology came to India in 1556. It was the Jesuit priests who brought this technology to our country. The first book printed in India was in Portugese language in Old Goa. It was Doctrina Christa by St. Francis Xavier.
The First Newspaper in India: On January 29, 1780 James Augustus Hickey launched the “Bengal Gazette”. It has another title “Calcutta Advertiser”. It was popularly known as “Hickey’s Gazette”. The first issue of the paper had two pages and later it was increased to four pages. It’s size was 35 cms x 24 cms
Progress Due To Mordern Technologies: Technological revolution has modernised the print media. From the days of wooden block printing, newspapers have undergone a massive change. For a long time, these were produced by hand composing. Later, these were replaced by monotype and linotype. In this process, a machine operated by a key board was used to compose letters. This has also become