A stack of newspapers
A University of Manchester historian is marking the little known 130-year anniversary of the launch of the Detroit Free Press' London edition - the first American newspaper to operate abroad. Bob Nicholson says for the best part of 20 years, the edition-launched in July 1881 was one of the bestselling papers in the UK selling more than 100,000 copies a week. The study of the Free Press London edition - an important milestone in American culture abroad - has been, he says, neglected by historians. He said: "130-years ago this month, the Detroit Free Press opened an office in London - a little known but a hugely important milestone in growing influence of American culture. "Before long, it was flying off newsstands as Victorian readers rushed to get their hands on the latest American imports. "Decades before the arrival of Hollywood cinema, here was a form of American popular culture taking Victorian Britain by storm. "We tend to imagine Victorian newspapers as stuffy and old fashioned - but the Detroit Free Press was all about light entertainment and had more in common with modern magazines.
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