The invention of news: how the world came to know about itself

Introduction: All the news that's fit to tell

The beginnings of news publication: Power and imagination ; The wheels of commerce ; The first news prints ; State and nation ; Confidential correspondents ; Marketplace and tavern ; Triumph and tragedy

Mercury rising: Speeding the posts ; The first newspapers ; War and rebellion ; Storm in a coffee cup

Enlightenment?: The search for truth ; The age of the journal ; In business ; From our own correspondent ; Cry freedom ; How Samuel Sewall read his paper

Conclusion.