Newspaper of record

of , France's centre-right newspaper of record (public record and by reputation) A "newspaper of public record", or government gazette, refers to a publicly available newspaper that is authorized by a government to publish public or legal notices. It is often established by statute or official action and publication of notices within it, whether by the government or a private party, is considered sufficient to comply with legal requirements for public notice. Such gazettes may have minimal or no editorial content (opinion articles), and are focused on public notification of state services and state decisions; an example is Latvia's Latvijas Vēstnesis. In some jurisdictions, privately owned newspapers may register with the government to publish public and legal notices, or be otherwise eligible to publish such notices (terms used may include "newspaper of general circulation" among others). Likewise, a private newspaper may be designated by the courts for publication of legal notices, such as notices of fictitious business names, if judicial and statutory standards are met. These are sometimes called "legally adjudicated newspapers". Government organs The term "newspapers of public record" can also denote those owned and operated by a government that directs their entire editorial content. Such newspapers, while pejoratively termed "state mouthpieces", can also be called "official newspapers of record", independently of whether they publish legal notices – distinguishing them from a gazette whose primary role is to publish notices, as their entire content represents the official view and doctrine of the state. This kind of official newspaper is distinct from newspapers of record by reputation, and is liable to fail the reputation criterion due to its governmental control. The word "official" can be used to distinguish them from "newspapers of record by reputation". Examples include Russia's Rossiyskaya Gazeta, North Korea's Rodong Sinmun, and China's ''People's Daily''. ==Newspapers of record by reputation==

'' (1780), the world's oldest newspaper of record by reputation The second type of "newspaper of record" (also "journal of record", or in French '''') is not defined by formal criteria, and its characteristics vary. The category comprises newspapers that are considered to meet high standards of journalism, including editorial independence (particularly from the government and from its owners), accountability (mistakes are acknowledged), attention to detail and accuracy, and comprehensiveness and balance of coverage; they are regarded internationally (as well as in their own country/region) by major global outlets. Despite changes in society, newspapers of record by reputation have historically tended to maintain a similar tone, coverage, style, and traditions; many are over a century old and some over two centuries old (e.g., Neue Zürcher Zeitung, The Times, The Guardian, , and The Sydney Morning Herald). In recognition of that usage, The New York Times held an essay contest in 1927 in which entrants had to demonstrate "The Value of The New York Times Index and Files as a Newspaper of Record". The New York Times, and other newspapers of its type sought to chronicle events, acting as a record of the day's announcements, schedules, directories, proceedings, transcripts, and appointments. By 2004, The New York Times no longer considered itself a newspaper of record in the original, literal sense. Over time, historians relied on The New York Times and similar titles as a reliable archival and historical record of significant past events, and a gauge of societal opinions at the time of printing. The term "newspaper of record" evolved from its original literal sense to that newer meaning. the Financial Times, and to the Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei). Examples include: • Zimbabwe's The Herald lost its status as an established newspaper of record when it was eventually taken over by Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF party. • Venezuela's newspaper of record, El Nacional, • London-based pan-Arab newspaper of record, Al-Hayat, ceased publication in 2020 due to financial and political pressures. • In Cambodia, the Hun Sen administration forced both of Cambodia's newspapers of record out of business using contrived tax fines that resulted in the closure of The Cambodia Daily in 2017, and the sale of The Phnom Penh Post to a close ally of the Hun Sen administration in 2018. • Latvian newspaper Diena saw its established status as a newspaper of record diminish after a 2010 takeover, with the Historical Dictionary of Latvia (2017) listing it as "holding tenuously to a popular newspaper-of-record sentiment at home and abroad" due to "questions of ownership and if said owners influence newspaper content". • Népszabadság, Hungary's de facto newspaper of record, ceased publication in 2016 due to political and financial pressure. • Hürriyet, Turkey's former newspaper of record, lost its status as the newspaper of record in 2018, when it was sold to Demirören Group, a close ally of the Erdoğan administration, after years of financial pressure. ==See also==