Founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson as the Illustrated Daily News, the New York Daily News was the first successful tabloid newspaper in the United States. The paper attracted readers with sensational coverage of crime, scandal and violence, lurid photographs, and cartoons. For many decades the newspaper maintained a conservative populist editorial stance in contrast to its rival, the New York Post.
The paper was an early user of the Associated Press wirephoto service, which led to its developing a large staff of photographers. It specialized in stories of political wrongdoing, including the Teapot Dome Scandal and social intrigue, such as the romance between Wallis Simpson and King Edward VIII that resulted in his abdication. The News also focused on photography, and was an early user of the Polaroid camera.
Throughout its history, the Daily News has had offices at two locations in New York City. The first, at 220 East 42nd Street near Second Avenue, was designed by architects John Mead Howells and Raymond Hood as an official city landmark. It was also the model for the Daily Planet building in the first two Superman films. The newspaper moved to its current home at 450 West 33rd Street (also known as Manhattan West) in 1995.
Today the newspaper has a staff of about 4,000 people, and publishes six editions each weekday (including a Sunday News). It maintains local bureaus in the Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens, at City Hall, within One Police Plaza and at various state and federal courthouses. The newspaper also owns the television station WPIX, which was originally an affiliate of its namesake, and has radio stations in the city as well.
The Daily News is owned by Tronc, Inc., which bought the newspaper in 2017. The company owns several other newspapers and websites.