Key Moments in Web History

By EPCasaccio
  • Tim Berners-Lee releases World Wide Web browser and server software

    Tim Berners-Lee releases World Wide Web browser and server software

  • Daily Telegraph launches Electronic Telegraph

    Daily Telegraph launches Electronic Telegraph

  • Launch of Drudge Report. Founder Matt Drudge breaks first big online scoop in 1998 with Monica Lewinsky story

    Launch of Drudge Report. Founder Matt Drudge breaks first big online scoop in 1998 with Monica Lewinsky story

  • Launch of BBC Online

    Launch of BBC Online

  • Pyra Labs creates Blogger, free software that allows anyone to set up their own blog

    Pyra Labs creates Blogger, free software that allows anyone to set up their own blog

  • Readers flood websites for news following terrorists attacks of September 11

    Readers flood websites for news following terrorists attacks of September 11

  • "The Guardian" publishes minute-by-minute coverage of sports events, a process which would later be described as "liveblogging"

    "The Guardian" publishes minute-by-minute coverage of sports events, a process which would later be described as "liveblogging"

  • US Senate Republican Leader Trent Loft stands down after bloggers pick up remarks ignored by mainstream press

    US Senate Republican Leader Trent Loft stands down after bloggers pick up remarks ignored by mainstream press

  • Invasion of Iraq: Salem Pax, the "Baghdad Blogger", posts updates from the city as it bombed, provided a particular contrast to war reporters 'embedded' with the armed forces and demonstrating the importance of non-journalist bloggers

    Invasion of Iraq: Salem Pax, the "Baghdad Blogger", posts updates from the city as it bombed, provided a particular contrast to war reporters 'embedded' with the armed forces and demonstrating the importance of non-journalist bloggers

  • Christopher Allbritton raises $15,000 raises $15,000 thrugh his blog Back-to-Iraq 3.0, to send him to report independently from the war, demonstrating the abilty of blogs to financially support independent journalism (called the "tip-jar model)

    Christopher Allbritton raises $15,000 raises $15,000 thrugh his blog Back-to-Iraq 3.0, to send him to report independently from the war, demonstrating the abilty of blogs to financially support independent journalism (called the "tip-jar model)

  • Rathergate/Memogate: CBS Anchorman Dan Rather resigns after bloggers raise questions about accuracy of CBS report on George W. Bush's National Guard service

    Rathergate/Memogate: CBS Anchorman Dan Rather resigns after bloggers raise questions about accuracy of CBS report on George W. Bush's National Guard service

  • Asian tsunami on Boxing Day demonstrates reach of web from inaccessible areas as images and video are published to the web from mobile phones

    Asian tsunami on Boxing Day demonstrates reach of web from inaccessible areas as images and video are published to the web from mobile phones

  • Podcasts take off as iTunes adds them to its jukebox

    Podcasts take off as iTunes adds them to its jukebox

  • Rupert Murdoch tells newspaper industry that it has been slow to respond to digital developments. Buys social networking site MySpace

    Rupert Murdoch tells newspaper industry that it has been slow to respond to digital developments. Buys social networking site MySpace

  • July 7 Bombings, London: mobile phone image of passengers walking along a Tube tunnel posted on MoBlog and the "Sun", and goes global from there. A significant moment in moblogging

    July 7 Bombings, London: mobile phone image of passengers walking along a Tube tunnel posted on MoBlog and the "Sun", and goes global from there. A significant moment in moblogging

  • Mainstream media reports Virginia Tech massacre using information from Facebook and other social media networking sites

    Mainstream media reports Virginia Tech massacre using information from Facebook and other social media networking sites

  • Myanmar protests are tracked via blogs and social networking sites as journalists blocked entry

    Myanmar protests are tracked via blogs and social networking sites as journalists blocked entry

  • Talking Points Memo Blog breaks story of US Attorneys being fired across the country, demonstrating the power of 'crowdsourcing': involving readers in an investigation, and carrying it out in public

    Talking Points Memo Blog breaks story of US Attorneys being fired across the country, demonstrating the power of 'crowdsourcing': involving readers in an investigation, and carrying it out in public

  • News of a Chinese earthquake spreads via Twitter

    News of a Chinese earthquake spreads via Twitter

  • Journalists look to Twitter as a tool after terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India are reported in real time by the microblogging service

    Journalists look to Twitter as a tool after terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India are reported in real time by the microblogging service

  • WikiLeaks works with news organizations on a series of major stories. The Iraq and Afghanistan war logs and Cablegate dominate the year and contribute to a broader interest in data journalism

    WikiLeaks works with news organizations on a series of major stories. The Iraq and Afghanistan war logs and Cablegate dominate the year and contribute to a broader interest in data journalism

  • Online news consumption and advertising surpasses print for the first tie in the US

    Online news consumption and advertising surpasses print for the first tie in the US

  • Citizen journalism site iReport is used to track and connect relatives after the Haiti earthquake

    Citizen journalism site iReport is used to track and connect relatives after the Haiti earthquake

  • Amazon launches the Kindle Singles formal, kickstarting interest in e-publishing 'longform' journalism of a greater length than traditional feature articles

    Amazon launches the Kindle Singles formal, kickstarting interest in e-publishing 'longform' journalism of a greater length than traditional feature articles

  • The "New York Times" 'immersive' story Snow Fall is published marking a broader move online towards longform journalism aimed at tablet users

    The "New York Times" 'immersive' story Snow Fall is published marking a broader move online towards longform journalism aimed at tablet users

  • Edward Snowden leaks information about global surveillance operations to the "Guardian", triggering a debate about information security and highlighting the difficulty of protecting sources and whitleblowers

    Edward Snowden leaks information about global surveillance operations to the "Guardian", triggering a debate about information security and highlighting the difficulty of protecting sources and whitleblowers

  • Google Glass is launched, leading to increased experimentation in both newsgathering and apps on wearable technology

    Google Glass is launched, leading to increased experimentation in both newsgathering and apps on wearable technology

  • Information hacked from the film studio Sony Pictures is leaked, for suspected political reasons. The information is widely reported in the entertainment and business press, but also stimulates ethical debate around the use of hacked data

    Information hacked from the film studio Sony Pictures is leaked, for suspected political reasons. The information is widely reported in the entertainment and business press, but also stimulates ethical debate around the use of hacked data

  • The podcast "Serial" becomes the fastest podcast to reach 5 million downloads and streams on iTunes, stimulating new interest in the format

    The podcast "Serial" becomes the fastest podcast to reach 5 million downloads and streams on iTunes, stimulating new interest in the format

  • A Metropolitan Police report reveals that authorities are using the RIPA Act to monitor journalists' communications with sources, triggering the "Save Our Sources" campaign

    A Metropolitan Police report reveals that authorities are using the RIPA Act to monitor journalists' communications with sources, triggering the "Save Our Sources" campaign

  • The New York Times's internal Innovation Report is leaked, providing a rare - and highly critical - insight into the cultural challenges facing traditional news organizations trying to adapt to the internet age

    The New York Times's internal Innovation Report is leaked, providing a rare - and highly critical - insight into the cultural challenges facing traditional news organizations trying to adapt to the internet age

  • Facebook Instant Articles and Apple News launch, followed by Google's Accelerated Mobile Pages in 2016, marking the start of a battle over mobile news

    Facebook Instant Articles and Apple News launch, followed by Google's Accelerated Mobile Pages in 2016, marking the start of a battle over mobile news

  • Live video app Meerkat launches, quickly followed by Twitter's Periscope and Facebook Live. Live video becomes an essential element in publishing strategy

    Live video app Meerkat launches, quickly followed by Twitter's Periscope and Facebook Live. Live video becomes an essential element in publishing strategy

  • The Apple Watch is launched, kickstarting interest in 'glance journalism'

    The Apple Watch is launched, kickstarting interest in 'glance journalism'

  • Chat app Telegram opens up its bot store to developers, and news organizations begin building chatbots to help users interact with their content

    Chat app Telegram opens up its bot store to developers, and news organizations begin building chatbots to help users interact with their content

  • Facebook accused of censorship after it deletes posts featuring the Vietnam War photo "The Terror of War." Norweigan newspaper editor, Espen Egil Hansen, sees his open letter to Mark Zuckerberg on the subject go viral

    Facebook accused of censorship after it deletes posts featuring the Vietnam War photo "The Terror of War." Norweigan newspaper editor, Espen Egil Hansen, sees his open letter to Mark Zuckerberg on the subject go viral

  • Amazon Echo launches in the UK and Google Home launches in the US, opening up new opportunities for publishing in the connected home

    Amazon Echo launches in the UK and Google Home launches in the US, opening up new opportunities for publishing in the connected home

  • Mark Zuckerberg announces Facebook will introduce new measures to tackle 'fake news' and work with fact-checking organisations amid suggestions other countries used propoganda to influence the US election

    Mark Zuckerberg announces Facebook will introduce new measures to tackle 'fake news' and work with fact-checking organisations amid suggestions other countries used propoganda to influence the US election

  • The "Independent" newspaper in the UK goes online-only

    The "Independent" newspaper in the UK goes online-only

  • The attempted coup in Turkey livestreamed on Facebook Live and Periscope. As the media is seized by the military, the president also uses Apple Facetime to broadcast live

    The attempted coup in Turkey livestreamed on Facebook Live and Periscope. As the media is seized by the military, the president also uses Apple Facetime to broadcast live

  • Citizens caught within a siege in Aleppo post harrowing goodbye messages

    Citizens caught within a siege in Aleppo post harrowing goodbye messages

    The citizens use social media, connecting with global audience in the absence of journalists on the ground. But communication is confused by proliferation of automated accounts intended to discredit the reports.
  • Text Reference

    Text Reference

    Bradshaw, P. The Online Journalism Handbook. London and New York: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, 2018.