Newspaper of record

A newspaper of record is a publication recognized for authoritative reporting or legally mandated public notices, serving as an official or reputational record of events.

In the United States, the New York Times calls itself the newspaper of record. In the journalistic profession, many journalists operate off a rule of thumb that nothing happens until the New York Times says it happened. A famous example is CBS News anchor Dan Rather's refusal to inform the public about the Paula Jones sexual harassment lawsuit against a sitting president, Bill Clinton, in his first term. Rather's excuse was that the lawsuit was not news until the New York Times said that it was news. Clinton, who built and maintained a coalition with women's rights advocates in his first term, was re-elected in 1996 with most voters unaware of the ongoing lawsuit and a long history of rape and sexual harassment allegations, with multiple witnesses willing to testify.

Various newspapers of record by country

Australia = Sydney Morning Herald logo

Canada Canada - The Globe and Mail

France - Le Figaro, Le Monde

Germany - Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Süddeutsche Zeitung, Die Welt, Die Zeit

Hong Kong - The South China Morning Post

India - The Hindu

Iran - Ettela'at

Republic of Ireland - The Irish Times

Israel - Haaretz

Italy - La Repubblica, Il Sole 24 Ore, La Stampa, Il Messaggero

Lebanon - An-Nahar

Mexico - Excélsior

Poland - Gazeta Wyborcza, Rzeczpospolita

Singapore - The Straits Times

Turkey - Cumhuriyet

United Kingdom - The Daily Telegraph, Financial Times, Guardian, The Times

United States - Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post