Originally called the Illustrated Daily News when it was launched on June 26th, 1919, the Daily News was the first “tabloid” newspaper in America. Publisher Joseph Patterson tried to appeal to a mass audience with large photos, illustrations, comics, and plenty of lurid, shocking headlines. By 1924 the paper had a circulation of 750,000, more than any other daily in the U.S.—proof that sensationalism helps sell newspapers.