The first newspaper in Indiana was published at Vincennes in 1804 and a second pioneer weekly appeared at Madison nine years later. By 1830, newspapers were also being published in Terre Haute, Indianapolis, and 11 other towns; the following year, the state's oldest surviving newspaper, the Richmond Palladium, began publication. Most pioneer newspapers were highly political and engaged in acrimonious feuds; in 1836, for example, the Indianapolis Journal referred to the editors of the rival Democrat as "the Lying, Hireling Scoundrels." By the time of the Civil War, Indiana had 154 weeklies and 13 dailies.
The last third of the 19th century brought a sharp increase in both the number and the quality of newspapers. Two newspapers which later became the state's largest in circulation, the Indianapolis News and the Star, began publishing in 1869 and 1903, respectively. In 1941 there were 294 weekly and 98 daily newspapers in Indiana; the number declined after World War II because of fierce competition for readers and advertising dollars, rising operating costs, and other financial difficulties.
In 2002, the state had 23 morning dailies and 45 evening dailies; Sunday papers numbered 23. In 2002, the Indianapolis morning Star had a daily circulation of 252,349 (Sunday circulation, 367,294)and the Gary Post-Tribune's circulation averaged 63,746 daily and 68,269 on Sundays.
A number of magazines are published in Indiana, including Children's Digest and The Saturday Evening Post.
Indiana is noted for its literary productivity. The list of authors claimed by Indiana up to 1966 showed a total of 3,600. Examination of the 10 best-selling novels each year from 1900 to 1940 (allowing 10 points to the top best-seller, down to 1 point for the 10th best-selling book) showed Indiana with a score of 213 points, exceeded only by New York's 218.
Many Hoosier authors were first published by Indiana's major book publisher, Bobbs-Merrill. Indiana University Press is an important publisher of scholarly books.