Titanic Disaster Newspaper Archive Published by PaperlessArchives.com

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New York Times Front Page April 16, 1912 Early Account of Titanic Sinking

The stalk reality of the scope of the disaster is clearly evident in the reporting that began to emerge on April 16.

Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) June 05, 2012

BACM Research – PaperlessArchives.com has announced the publishing of 1,200 selected complete American newspaper pages, dating from April 1, 1912 to April 14, 1922, covering the sinking of the Titanic and its aftermath.

A complete description of the Titanic Disaster Newspaper Archive can be found at:

http://www.paperlessarchives.com/titanic_newspaper_archive.html

The sinking of the Titanic was the first international news story of the twentieth century to receive instantaneous, intensive coverage world-wide.

American newspapers had an advantage over the British press, since survivors of the Titanic were brought to New York City. American newspapers had reporters in place when the first inquiry into the disaster was held by the U.S. Senate at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City, the day after the survivors landed.

Though not an uncommon mistake, the London Daily Mail ran the unfortunate headline on April 16, 1912, "Titanic Sunk. No Lives Lost. Collision with an Iceberg. Largest Ship in the World. 2,358 Lives in Peril. Rush of Liners to the Rescue. All Passengers Taken Off." Compare this to the New York Herald April 15, 1912 headline, "The Titanic Sinks with 1,800 on Board; Only 675, Mostly Woman and Children, Saved"

The first reports of the disaster published on April 15 contained many inaccuracies. A bias toward optimism can be seen in the first headlines and articles regarding the fate of the super-liner and her passengers. The stalk reality of the scope of the disaster is clearly evident in the reporting that began to emerge on April 16, 1912.

Newspapers fed the public interest in the Titanic disaster by publishing sensational banner headlines, reports, stories, special sections, photographs, and editorials. This collection shows the result of different efforts to balance the need to sell newspapers and the reporting of accurate information.

Research by scholars has not been able to substantiate many inflated tales of honor and daring-do that were widely reported to a stunned public. For example, most Titanic researchers can find no hard evidence to support the widely reported story that Titanic victim Major Butt single handily stood between men, who to save themselves, would deny the extrication of women and children from the sinking Titanic. A headline from the April 19, 1912, Los Angeles Times read: "Maj. Butt with Gun in Hand, Held Back Frenzied Men, Saved Women; Capt. Smith a Suicide on Bridge."

The newspaper articles cover details that are still in dispute today, such as the controversy over what the Titanic band was playing as the ship sank, some say it was the hymn "Autumn", and others say it was "Nearer My God to Thee." Accounts differ as to the last moments of Captain Smith. Press coverage established 100-year commonly accepted anecdotes such as Mrs. Strauss giving up her seat in a lifeboat in order to remain with her husband on the doomed ship; And Bruce Ismay's alleged cowardice, climbing aboard a lifeboat though women and children were waiting for places.

Among the many RMS Titanic Disaster subjects covered by the newspapers were: Iceberg sightings in the area of the sinking; Efforts by the Carpathia to rescue survivors and return them to land; The American enquiry into the disaster held by the United States Senate; Accounts by survivors of the Titanic sinking; Various theories about the sinking, some which today seem laughable; The role played or not played by ships such as the Carpathia, SS Californian, Mackay-Bennett, Minia, Montmagny and the Algerine; The effort to recover Titanic victims’ bodies at sea; The British Board of Trade enquiry into the disaster; Judgments about the Titanic sinking and recommendations to prevent a similar tragedy.

The Newspapers in this set include:

New York Times
Los Angeles Times
Washington Times
New York Tribune
The Washington Herald
The Sun (New York City, NY) and more.

For a complete description, sample pages, and to obtain the collection go to:

http://www.paperlessarchives.com/titanic_newspaper_archive.html

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