19th-century Catholic Periodical Literature - Generalities

Generalities

Up to a few decades before 1800, most of the periodical publications in mainly Catholic countries can be regarded as "Catholic" literature: the editorial line is implicitly Catholic.

Owen Chadwick argued strongly that the development of the press in the nineteenth century was in general terms a major factor in secularization. On the other hand, he states that "The Pope of 1889 was far more influential that the Pope of 1839 because the later Pope was surrounded by the press and the earlier Pope was not."

Periodical literature includes the political newspaper, the weekly, and literary and specialized magazines and journals appearing less frequently. The Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913 offered an analysis in terms of several factors: in some countries such as Spain the implicit Catholicism persisted in the press for many years. The American-style, news-led paper would sell on its news content, rather than editorial line, and therefore Catholic newspapers could compete as dailies. European papers and weeklies relied more on the feuilleton and generally had more op-ed content. This meant they showed "greater animosity to the Church".