Life, 1922-09-07 · page 7 of 44
Life — September 7, 1922 — page 7: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes the printing press's impact on modern journalism. The illustration shows Johannes Gutenberg (inventor of the movable-type printing press) dreaming of a "Sunday newspaper" - depicted as an angel figure presenting newspapers to him. The accompanying text mocks contemporary Sunday editions, attacking their sensationalism: "colored funny section," oversized news coverage of trivial matters, and editorials that presume to solve world problems while accepting paid advertising disguised as news ("press-agent material"). The satire targets how newspapers—originally Gutenberg's revolutionary invention—have become vehicles for frivolous content and hidden advertising presented as legitimate journalism. The "dream" has become corrupted by commercialism and yellow journalism practices.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“Wite- ‘Sunday Edition- Gutenberg’s Dream (NE gets easily tired after H | inventing type, and Guten- Mi berg rested his head in his arms. ‘Tell me’, be asked of the good fairy who hovers over inventors at such moments, “tell metwhat this child of mp brain twill grow up to be. Let me see it in its perfection, centuries from notv.” And lo, Gutenberg dreamed a dream! And he saw, lying on the front Door-step, a Sunday newspaper. With trembling fingers be lifted its beabp bulk to the table and undid it, rebeal- ing the following precious contents: @ colored funny section, combining the worst taste and the worst art of which the known world is capable. @ news section, made up for the most part of unimportant chronicles dilated far beyond their legitimate size and coated with a spurious gilt of im- portance to justify their taking up the space not Devoted to advertising. Editorials settling all the problems of the world in alphabetical order, written bymen whose personal opinions in the open air would be rated at about eleven cents on the dollar, but who, under the impressive anonpmity of an editorial page, can make and unmake wars, laws, and men. Press-agent material, sent out bp the bundle from agencies ‘for release Sunday’, printed in the quise of im- partial news. Sensational special articles, based on the theory that everyone must read a peck of Dirt before he dies... . . At this point, Gutenberg roused him: self from bis dream, and, gathering up his type, threw it into the fire. comicbooks.com