"Serve It Up Hot and Brief": The Journalistic Innovations and Influence of Willard M. Kiplinger. Issue 2 (3rd April 2021) - Wells, Rob
Abstract : The newsletter format has witnessed a popular resurgence in digital media but little is known about the origins of this multi-billion dollar industry for specialized information. Newsletter industry pioneer Willard M. Kiplinger, whose Kiplinger Washington Letter claims to be the oldest continuously published newsletter in the US, perfected a type of reporting that influenced publications ranging from Newsweek to U.S. News & World Report, Bloomberg, Axios, and others. The Kiplinger Washington Letter was influential during the New Deal, with Kiplinger serving as a crucial bridge between conservative business leaders and New Deal regulators. Kiplinger's weekly newsletter nurtured a close reader engagement through a specialized research service and extensive correspondence with his subscribers, a type of early crowdsourcing that anticipated the active audience interaction in digital journalism.