A newsletter is a

printed Printing is a process for mass reproducing text and images using a master form or template. The earliest non-paper products involving printing include cylinder seals and objects such as the Cyrus Cylinder and the Cylinders of Nabonidus. The ...

or electronic report containing

news News is information about current events. This may be provided through many different media: word of mouth, printing, postal systems, broadcasting, electronic communication, or through the testimony of observers and witnesses to events. ...

concerning the activities of a

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or buying and selling products (such as goods and services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for profit." Having a business name does not separ ...

or an

organization An organization or organisation ( Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose. The word is derived fro ...

that is sent to its members, customers, employees or other subscribers. Newsletters generally contain one main topic of interest to its recipients. A newsletter may be considered

grey literature Grey literature (or gray literature) is materials and research produced by organizations outside of the traditional commercial or academic publishing and distribution channels. Common grey literature publication types include reports ( annual, res ...

. E-newsletters are delivered electronically via

e-mail Electronic mail (email or e-mail) is a method of exchanging messages ("mail") between people using electronic devices. Email was thus conceived as the electronic (digital) version of, or counterpart to, mail, at a time when "mail" mean ...

and can be viewed as

spamming Spamming is the use of messaging systems to send multiple unsolicited messages (spam) to large numbers of recipients for the purpose of commercial advertising, for the purpose of non-commercial proselytizing, for any prohibited purpose (especia ...

if e-mail marketing is sent unsolicited. The newsletter is the most common form of serial publication. About two-thirds of newsletters are internal publications, aimed towards employees and volunteers, while about one-third are external publications, aimed towards advocacy or special interest groups.

History

ancient Rome In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–50 ...

, newsletters were exchanged between officials or

friend Friendship is a relationship of mutual affection between people. It is a stronger form of interpersonal bond than an "acquaintance" or an "association", such as a classmate, neighbor, coworker, or colleague. In some cultures, the concept o ...

s. By the Middle Ages, they were exchanged between merchant families. Trader's newsletters covered various topics such as the availability and pricing of goods, political news, and other events that would influence trade. These commercial newsletters were in effect, the first "serious" outlet for news publishing, from which evolved

newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports ...

s. The first full "newspaper" was '' Relation of Strasbourg'', printed in 1609 by Johann Carolus. Many rivals soon followed, such as the German ''

Avisa Relation oder Zeitung ''Avisa Relation oder Zeitung'' was one of the first news-periodicals in the world. It was published in Wolfenbüttel, Germany, in 1609. The printer/publisher was Lucas Schulte. The first issue states that the news had been collected from variou ...

'' and the Dutch '' Nieuwe Tijdingen''. By the end of the 17th century, several newspapers were established all across Europe, and were often translated into other languages. By the late 17th century, several governments were censoring newspapers, which harmed their development. Wars, like the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battl ...

, also imposed restrictions on trade, which could lead to shortage of paper in addition to censorship. Government censorship remains in effect in several countries to this day, although several countries now have laws guaranteeing

freedom of the press Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic media, especially published materials, should be considered a right to be exerci ...

Modern newsletters

Newsletter marketing is a form of

direct-to-consumer advertising Direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) refers to the marketing and advertising of pharmaceutical products directly to consumers as patients, as opposed to specifically targeting health professionals. The term is synonymous primarily with the ad ...

. This is used by companies that want to send information directly to potential and existing customers. When received unsolicited, they can be seen as

spam Spam may refer to: * Spam (food), a canned pork meat product * Spamming, unsolicited or undesired electronic messages ** Email spam, unsolicited, undesired, or illegal email messages ** Messaging spam, spam targeting users of instant messaging ( ...

. Newsletters are also used by organizations to inform their members of ongoing developments.

Production

Many paper newsletters are letter-size

pamphlet A pamphlet is an unbound book (that is, without a hard cover or binding). Pamphlets may consist of a single sheet of paper that is printed on both sides and folded in half, in thirds, or in fourths, called a ''leaflet'' or it may consist of a ...

s, sometimes made of side- or corner-stapled letter-size paper, sometimes of saddle-stitched (stapled) tabloid paper. Until the early 20th century, newsletters were generally produced by

letterpress Letterpress printing is a technique of relief printing. Using a printing press, the process allows many copies to be produced by repeated direct impression of an inked, raised surface against sheets or a continuous roll of paper. A worker comp ...

. The development of spirit duplicators and mimeograph machines in the early 20th century made short-run reproduction more economical. In the 1960s, xerographic photocopying became ubiquitous.

History

Modern newsletters

Production

See also

References

Further reading