The New York Times is a daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed internationally. It is owned by The New York Times Company, which publishes 15 other newspapers, including the International Herald Tribune and The Boston Globe. It is the largest metropolitan newspaper in the United States. Nicknamed the "Gray Lady" for its staid appearance and style, it is often regarded as a national newspaper of record, meaning that it is frequently relied upon as the official and authoritative reference for modern events. Founded in 1851, the newspaper has won 95 Pulitzer Prizes, more than any other newspaper. The newspaper's title, like other similarly-named publications, is often abbreviated to the Times. Its famous motto, always printed in the upper left-hand corner of the front page, is: "All the News That's Fit to Print."

The current publisher is Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr., a member of the family that has controlled the paper since 1896.

The New York Times was founded on September 18, 1851 by journalist and politician Henry Jarvis Raymond and former banker George Jones as the New-York Daily Times. The paper switched its name to The New York Times in 1857. The newspaper was originally published every day but Sunday, but during the Civil War the Times (along with other major dailies) started publishing Sunday issues.

The paper's growing influence was seen when, in 1870 and 1871, a series of Times exposés targeting Boss Tweed ended the Tweed Ring's domination of New York's city hall.

In the 1880s, the Times transitioned from supporting Republican candidates to becoming a politically independent paper; in 1884, the paper supported Grover Cleveland in his first presidential election. While this move initially hurt the Times's readership, the paper regained most of its lost ground within a few years.

The Times was acquired by Adolph Ochs, publisher of The Chattanooga Times, in 1896. In 1897, he coined the paper's celebrated slogan, "All The News That's Fit To Print," widely interpreted as a jab at competing papers in New York City (the New York World and the New York Journal American) that were known for lurid yellow journalism. Under his guidance, The New York Times achieved an international scope, circulation, and reputation.

The paper moved its headquarters to 42nd Street in 1904, giving its name to Times Square. It was here that the New Year's Eve tradition of lowering a lighted ball from the Times building was started by the paper. After only nine years in Times Square, the paper relocated to 229 West 43rd Street. It remained there until the spring of 2007, and is now three blocks south, at 620 Eighth Avenue. The original Times Square building, now known as One Times Square, was sold in 1961.

During the next two decades, the Times made use of new technology to obtain news and deliver it to readers. In 1904, the Times received the first on-the-spot wireless transmission from a naval battle, a report of the destruction of the Russian fleet at the Battle of Port Arthur in the Yellow Sea from the press-boat Haimun during the Russo-Japanese war. In 1910, the first air delivery of the Times to Philadelphia began. The Times' first trans-Atlantic delivery to London occurred in 1919. Finally, in 1920, a "4 A.M. Airplane Edition" was sent by plane to Chicago so it could be in the hands of Republican convention delegates by evening.

In the 1940s, the paper extended its breadth and its reach. The crossword began appearing regularly in 1942, and the fashion section started in 1946. The Times also began an international edition in 1946. The international edition stopped publishing it in 1967, when it joined with the owners of the New York Herald Tribune and The Washington Post to publish the International Herald Tribune in Paris. The paper even bought a classical radio station (WQXR) in 1946.

The New York Times reduced its page width to 12 inches (300 mm) from 13.5 inches (340 mm) on August 6, 2007, adopting the width that has become the newspaper industry standard.

Times v. Sullivan
The paper's involvement in a 1964 libel case helped bring about one of the key United States Supreme Court decisions supporting the freedom of the press, New York Times Co. v. Sullivan.

In the case, the United States Supreme Court established the actual malice standard for press reports to be considered defamatory or libelous. It is one of the key decisions supporting the freedom of the press. The actual malice standard requires that the plaintiff in a defamation or libel case prove that the publisher of the statement in question knew that the statement was false or acted in reckless disregard of its truth or falsity. Because of the extremely high burden of proof on the plaintiff, and the difficulty in proving essentially what is inside a person's head, such cases — when they involve public figures — rarely, if ever, prevail.

The Pentagon Papers
Further information: History and background of New York Times Co. v. United States
In 1971, the Pentagon Papers, a top-secret United States Department of Defense history of the United States' political and military involvement in the Vietnam War from 1945 to 1971, were given ("leaked") to Neil Sheehan of The New York Times by former State Department official Daniel Ellsberg, with his friend Anthony Russo assisting in copying them. The Times began publishing excerpts as a series of articles on June 13. Controversy and lawsuits followed.

The Papers revealed, among other things, that the government had deliberately expanded its role in the war by conducting air strikes over Laos, raids along the coast of North Vietnam, and offensive actions taken by U.S. Marines well before the American public was told about the actions, and while President Lyndon B. Johnson had been promising not to expand the war. The document increased the credibility gap for the U.S. government, and was seen as hurting the efforts by the Nixon administration to fight the war.

When the Times began publishing its series, President Nixon became incensed. His words to National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger that day included "people have gotta be put to the torch for this sort of thing..." and "let's get the son-of-a-bitch in jail." After failing to get the Times to voluntarily stop publishing, Attorney General John Mitchell and President Nixon requested and obtained a federal court injunction that the Times cease the publication of excerpts. The newspaper appealed the injunction, and the case began working its way through the court system.

On June 18, 1971 the Washington Post began publishing its own series of articles. Ben Bagdikian, a Post editor, had obtained portions of the Papers from Ellsberg. That day the Post received a call from the Assistant Attorney General, William Rehnquist, asking them to stop publishing the documents. When the Post refused, the U.S. Justice Department sought another injunction. The U.S. District court judge refused, and the government appealed.

On June 26, 1971 the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to take both cases, merging them into the case New York Times Co. v. United States 403 U.S. 713. On June 30, 1971 the Supreme Court held in a 6-3 decision that the injunctions were unconstitutional prior restraints and that the government had not met the heavy burden of proof required for prior restraint. The justices wrote nine separate opinions, disagreeing on significant substantive issues. While it was generally seen as a victory for those who claim the First Amendment enshrines an absolute right to free speech, many felt it was a lukewarm victory at best, offering little protection for future publishers when claims of national security are at stake.

Pulitzer Prizes
Main article: Pulitzer Prizes awarded to the New York Times' staff
The Times has won 95 Pulitzer Prizes, far more than any other newspaper.

 Historical controversies

New York Times headlines on the mass murder of Armenians and Pontic Greeks[6]The paper, like many news organizations, has often been accused of giving too little or too much coverage to various events for reasons not related to objective journalism.

One of these allegations is that before and during World War II, the newspaper downplayed accusations that the Third Reich had targeted Jews for expulsion and genocide, at least in part because the publisher, who was Jewish, feared the taint of taking on any "Jewish cause."

Another serious charge is the accusation that the Times, through its coverage of the Soviet Union by correspondent Walter Duranty, helped to cover up the Ukrainian genocide perpetrated by Joseph Stalin in the 1930s.

In 1965, the Times published a story about a Jewish man turned Neo-Nazi, Dan Burros. Burros killed himself only minutes after the paper came out with the story.

The Times has been accused by Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting of giving partial coverage of events in the 1980s in Central America, in particular by insisting on human rights violations committed in Nicaragua, to the detriment of other abuses during the Salvadoran Civil War, the Guatemalan Civil War or under the dictatorship in Honduras.

Until 2004 the Times had a policy of not using the term Armenian Genocide. Despite publishing dozens of articles about the Armenian Genocide, the Times for a period shied away from using the term in its articles as part of its editorial policy. The Turkish Government denies genocide occurred. Times columnist and former reporter Nicholas D. Kristof, who is of Armenian descent, has criticized in his Times column the ongoing denial of the Armenian Genocide by the Turkish government.
 

(source/Wikipedia)