Washington, D.C.

Donald A. Ritchie

As the seat of the United States federal government, Washington, D.C., serves as a magnet for print and broadcast journalists from around the world. Indeed, news media have been attracted to the capital city since the government moved there from Philadelphia in 1800. Over the next two centuries the Washington press corps grew in size and complexity along with the nation, and rose and fell in public esteem along with attitudes toward the government. Local Washington media struggled to compete with national reporters, emerging as another significant force in American journalism. The federal government both generates and manipulates the news. Decisions by Presidents, executive agencies, Congress, and the Supreme Court affect the lives of all citizens and claim a prominent place on front pages and in broadcast news programs. Having a large stake in their news coverage, political office-holders seek to shape that coverage through news releases and conferences, interviews, ...

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