The Free Press Journal

The Free Press Journal is an Indian English-language daily newspaper that was established in 1928 by Swaminathan Sadanand, who also acted as its first editor. First produced to complement a news agency, the Free Press of India, it was a supporter of the Independence movement. It is published in Mumbai, India.

The Free Press Journal

Front page of the Mumbai edition of The Free Press Journal (30 October 2024)
Type	Daily Newspaper
Format	Broadsheet
Publisher	Indian National Press Bombay Pvt. Ltd.
Editor-in-chief	G. L. Lakhotia
Associate editor	S. S. Dhawan
Founded	1928 [1]
Language	English
Headquarters	Free Press House, Free Press Journal Marg, 215, Nariman Point, Mumbai 400021
Circulation	154,000
Sister newspapers	Navshakti
Website	freepressjournal.in

History

The founder editor was Swaminathan Sadanand.^[2] It was founded in 1928 to support Free Press of India, a news agency that dispatched "nationalist" news to its subscribers.^[3] In the colonial context, Colaco describes it as "an independent newspaper supporting nationalist causes". She quotes Lakshmi^[who?] as saying that "The nationalist press marched along with the freedom fighters".^[4] It played a significant role in mobilising sympathetic public opinion during the independence movement.^[5]

Notable former employees

Among its founders was Stalin Srinivasan who founded Manikkodi in 1932. Bal Thackeray worked as a cartoonist for the newspaper until being removed from the job. Thackeray then founded Marmik.^[6] According to Atkins he was removed "after a political dispute over Thackeray's attacks on southern Indian immigration into Bombay"^[7] Notable cartoonist R. K. Laxman joined The Free Press Journal as a twenty-year-old. He was Thackeray's colleague. Three years into the job, he was asked by his proprietor not to make fun at communists, Laxman left and joined The Times of India.^[8]

Support to Jewish refugee medical doctors

It supported the practice rights of Jewish doctors who had taken refuge in Mumbai fleeing persecution in Germany, in the 1930s. Indian doctors opposed their right to practice claiming that Germany did not have reciprocal arrangements for Indian doctors. The Free Press Journal argued that this was against the "ancient Indian traditions of affording shelter from persecution".^[9]

Columnists

• Seema Mustafa: Seema Mustafa is a Resident Editor for The Sunday Guardian. She writes a column "Frankly Speaking Seema Mustafa".

See also

• Journalism portal

• Navshakti^[10]

References

1. "Website showing 1928 written beneath "The Free Press Journal"". Free Press Journal. Free Press Journal. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
2. Arnold P. Kaminsky; Roger D. Long (2011). India Today: An Encyclopedia of Life in the Republic. ABC-CLIO. p. 340. ISBN 978-0-313-37462-3.
3. Asha Kasbekar (2006). Pop culture India!: media, arts, and lifestyle. ABC-CLIO. p. 111. ISBN 978-1-85109-636-7.
4. Bridgette Phoenicia Colaco; Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. Mass Communication and Media Arts (2006). What is the news o Narada? Newspeople in a new India. p. 46. ISBN 978-0-549-22400-6.
5. Centre for Studies in Civilizations (Delhi, India) (2010). Social sciences: communication, anthropology and sociology. Longman. p. 218. ISBN 978-81-317-1883-4.
6. Ravinder Kaur (2005). Religion, violence, and political mobilisation in South Asia. SAGE. p. 88. ISBN 978-0-7619-3431-8.
7. Stephen E. Atkins (2004). Encyclopedia of modern worldwide extremists and extremist groups. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 317–. ISBN 978-0-313-32485-7.
8. Rukun Advani (1997). Civil lines: new writing from India. Orient Blackswan. p. 110. ISBN 978-81-7530-013-2.
9. Joan G. Roland (1998). The Jewish communities of India: identity in a colonial era. Transaction Publishers. p. 179. ISBN 978-0-7658-0439-6.
10. Details about The Free Press Journal

External links

• Official website
• Online edition (ePaper)