Joseph Gales Jr.

 Born in England, Joseph Gales Jr. was son to a newspaper publisher. He and his family came to America in 1795 and lived in Philadelphia. His family began to publish a Jeffersonian newspaper in North Carolina, where he was enrolled in the University of North Carolina and, unfortunately, expelled a year later. His newspaper career started in 1807, when he became a member of The National Intelligencer staff. In 1810, three years later, Gales gained full control.

     The National Intelligencer was a major newspaper in the United States, and under Gales’ influence, it was a main source of news and was published three times a week. His brother-in-law, William Winston Seaton, joined the staff in October of 1812. This was extremely beneficial to Gales, lessening his workload. Gales often called his father for help in reporting the events of Congress before Seaton joined the staff.

     Gales tried to remain neutral in his publications, especially during 1800s with the rise of slavery controversy. Unfortunately, many of his subscribers were unhappy with this, because they lived in the south. Gales’ work was different from most of the right and left leaning publications of the time, which makes him stand out as a journalist today.

     Records of affairs in Congress were published by Gales and Seaton in 1825, beginning a yearly publication called the Register of Debates in Congress, along with the American state Papers and the annuals of Congress.  They both became very active in reporting on Washington’s affairs. Daniel Webster commented on Gales, saying that he “‘knows more about the history of the government than all the political writers of the day put together.’”

Elliot, Robert N. "Gales, Joseph, Jr." NCpedia Home Page. NCpedia, 1986. Web. 12 Sept. 2013. <http://ncpedia.org/biography/gales-joseph-jr>.