As the population of the United States grew, newspaper circulation skyrocketed in the 1880s and 1890s, and technological innovations kept pace. Improved printing methods made possible an increase in newspaper and magazine distribution without increasing costs. The availability of these new processes allowed publishers to promote their papers with the knowledge that their presses could keep up with demand. Advertisers also bought more space, knowing that many readers would see their skillfully printed advertisements.Finally, a fall in the price of newsprint helped large-scale printing to remain cheap.

The Greatest Innovation.

In the history of printing no innovation rivals the 1884 introduction of the Linotype machine. For more than four hundred years typesetting had remained the same—full pages of type had to be set manually, letter by letter, with individual precast type pieces. The Linotype allowed typesetters to create mechanically one line of type...