Today's state-of-the-art Illawarra Mercury evolved in three distinct stages.
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The early Mercury, like most colonial newspapers, gave little thought to presentation.
Front pages were a mishmash of display and classified advertising, with news stories filling any gaps without regard for presentation.
But a dramatic upheaval in newspaper production occurred in the late 1920s.
Advances in photographic techniques heralded a new boldness as editors swept aside the conservatism that characterised early newspapers to produce the forerunners of today’s news pages.
The rationale for the change was simple.
Publishers had arrived at the conclusion that dramatic news coverage sold newspapers.
The day’s major stories were splashed across the front pages, with many broadsheet newspapers switching to tabloid format.
The third significant step in the development of today’s paper came about in the early 1980s with the advent of computerisation.
Almost overnight, technological change swept through the nation’s newspaper industry.
Out went the Remingtons and in came the personal computers.
Copy boys, printers and the pungent smell of molten lead went by the board.
Many old-time journalists, unable to cope with the computer age, chose to retire rather than readjust.
Linotype operators, printers, press operators and engravers were faced with the prospect of retraining as keyboard operators or quitting the industry.
Typewriters, telexes and the awesome linotype machines, enduring symbols of the industry, were consigned to the scrapheap.
Gone, too, was the smoke-filled bullring atmosphere that had symbolised the newsroom, the frenetic hustle and bustle replaced by a measured calm more in keeping with an insurance office.
Messages and directives once shouted across the newsroom were now delivered via computer-generated messages.
Ash trays were out; ergonomic chairs were in.
The make-up of the newspaper workforce also changed dramatically. The past 50 years has seen a once male-dominated industry suddenly ‘‘invaded’’ by women.
Until the 1960s, a woman was a rarity in the nation’s newsrooms and unheard of on the printing floor.
The ‘‘girls’’ who managed to break down the old prejudices were generally assigned to report on fashion and social events.
Today, women are challenging the male ascendancy numerically and hold many key positions at the Mercury and other newspapers.
Newspapers also place a greater emphasis on recruiting a better-educated workforce.
New journalists recruited by the Mercury are invariably university graduates.
Technology also opened doors for artists and designers to play a prominent role in the daily production of newspapers.
The introduction of digital cameras brought an end to negative film and newspaper darkrooms, with photographers submitting their work directly into the system.
The new technological era was embraced by the Mercury management from the outset.
The introduction of an Atex publishing system in the early 1980s changed forever the way our newspaper was produced.
Journalists and advertising operators had individual VDT screens to directly input copy.
The purchase of a Goss Urbanite offset printing press in 1986 opened the door to full-process colour and placed the Mercury at the forefront of the industry.
The Mercury was the first newspaper in Australia to run daily news colour on the front and back pages.
A new Cybergraphics system was installed in 1998 to bring the Mercury into line with other Fairfax mastheads.
The approach of the new millennium brought two momentous milestones for the newspaper.
The first was a decision to shut the celebrated Goss press and to print the paper at Fairfax’s plant at Chullora, a move designed to streamline distribution and production.
Another wrench with history came with the decision in 2004 to move the Mercury from Keira Street, Wollongong, to a new office nearby in Auburn Street.
After 10 years in Auburn Street, the Mercury relocated to its current premises in Market Street and appointed its first female general manager, Corinne Whiteman.
This year marked another development in the Mercury’s history, with the introduction of a new working system which aims to build a stronger, sustainable and modern media network.
When announcing the changes, the director of Fairfax Media's Australian Community Media division John Angilley said the move was about "investing in our newspapers and websites to set them up for the future".
"Journalists, photographers and sales teams will work with new skills, capabilities and resources so they can continue to do what they do best - create quality journalism and connect advertisers to our audiences," Mr Angilley said.