Newspapers and Their Advertisements in the Commonwealth
W.L.F. Nuttall describes how, when the Star Chamber was abolished in 1641 it became easier to print home news, and many newspapers appeared, supporting both sides in the Civil Wars.
In the early days of English Newspapers, the printing of foreign news was always permissible, but strict censorship by the Government made the publication of home news very difficult. It was not until the Long Parliament abolished the Star Chamber in 1641 that censorship was relaxed and several newspapers with national news made their appearance.
The first of these dealt with the proceedings of Parliament and came out weekly in the form of eight small octavo pages. This set the pattern for subsequent newspapers, which frequently stole titles from each other and plagiarized news and stories. Moreover, in the struggle for survival, some news sheets never got beyond their first number, while others amalgamated so as to meet competition.
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