Old-school news: sensational, moralistic and, above all, sung

WORLD NEWS

Before the advent of mass media, TV, radio and even newspapers, people still wished to remain informed about current events.

TV,

But without modern media ― and in an age when few people could read ― how did news spread?

How did a common Londoner or Parisian learn about what was happening in the world? Through the medium of song.

Long before (and indeed long after) newspapers became a widespread phenomenon in the 17th century, news was just as likely to be performed as read.

From the early days of printing in the 16th century up until the 20th century, news events were regularly put into verse, printed on cheap broadsides and pamphlets, and sung to a familiar tune. These news ballads would be sold in busy streets, fairs and marketplaces by hawkers who would sing the contents to attract a crowd of buyers.

Given the low rates of literacy, song was a particularly effective medium of information transmission since rhyme and rhythm allowed listeners to more easily remember the lyrics.

News ballads often covered a remarkably similar range of themes to modern journalism: crime and punishment, politics, military events, and natural disasters.