The Times

===1890 to 1981===
''The Times'' faced financial failure in 1890 under [[Arthur Fraser Walter]], but it was rescued by an energetic editor, [[Charles Frederic Moberly Bell]]. During his tenure (1890–1911), ''The Times'' became associated with selling the ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]'' using aggressive American marketing methods introduced by [[Horace Everett Hooper]] and his advertising executive, Henry Haxton. Due to legal fights between the ''Britannica's'' two owners, Hooper and [[Walter Montgomery Jackson]], ''The Times'' severed its connection in 1908 and was bought by pioneering newspaper [[magnate]], [[Alfred Harmsworth]], later Lord Northcliffe.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Alfred-Charles-William-Harmsworth-Viscount-Northcliffe-of-Saint-Peter|title=Alfred Charles William Harmsworth, Viscount Northcliffe {{!}} British publisher|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en|access-date=28 December 2019|archive-date=13 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200313064732/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Alfred-Charles-William-Harmsworth-Viscount-Northcliffe-of-Saint-Peter|url-status=live}}</ref>

In editorials published on 29 and 31 July 1914, [[Wickham Steed]], the ''Times's'' Chief Editor, argued that the [[British Empire]] should enter [[World War I]].<ref>Ferguson, Niall (1999). ''The Pity of War'' London: Basic Books. p. 217. {{ISBN|978-0-465-05711-5}}</ref> On 8 May 1920, also under the editorship of [[Wickham Steed|Steed]], ''The Times'' in an editorial endorsed the [[anti-Semitic]] fabrication ''[[The Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion]]'' as a genuine document, and called Jews the world's greatest danger. In the leader entitled "The Jewish Peril, a Disturbing Pamphlet: Call for Inquiry", Steed wrote about ''The Protocols of the Elders of Zion'': <blockquote>What are these 'Protocols'? Are they authentic? If so, what malevolent assembly concocted these plans and gloated over their exposition? Are they forgery? If so, whence comes the uncanny note of prophecy, prophecy in part fulfilled, in part so far gone in the way of fulfillment?".<ref>Friedländer, Saul (1997). ''Nazi Germany and the Jews''. New York: HarperCollins. p. 95. {{ISBN|978-0-06-019042-2}}</ref></blockquote> The following year, when [[Philip Graves]], the [[Constantinople]] (modern [[Istanbul]]) correspondent of ''The Times'', exposed ''The Protocols'' as a forgery,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ballylickeymanorhouse.com/history/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100701191603/http://www.ballylickeymanorhouse.com/history/|url-status=dead|archive-date=1 July 2010| title=The Graves family in Ireland |publisher=Ballylickey Manor House|date=1 July 2010|access-date=28 December 2019}}</ref> ''The Times'' retracted the editorial of the previous year.

In 1922, [[John Jacob Astor, 1st Baron Astor of Hever|John Jacob Astor]], son of the [[William Waldorf Astor, 1st Viscount Astor|1st Viscount Astor]], bought ''The Times'' from the [[Alfred Harmsworth|Northcliffe estate]]. The paper gained a measure of notoriety in the 1930s with its advocacy of German [[appeasement]]; editor [[Geoffrey Dawson]] was closely allied with government supporters of appeasement, most notably [[Neville Chamberlain]]. Candid news reports by [[Norman Ebbutt|Norman Ebbut]] from Berlin that warned of Nazi warmongering were rewritten in London to support the appeasement policy.<ref>Gordon Martel, ed. ''The Times and Appeasement: The Journals of A L Kennedy, 1932–1939'' (2000).</ref><ref>Frank McDonough,  "The Times, Norman Ebbut and the Nazis, 1927–37." Journal of Contemporary History 27.3 (1992): 407–424.</ref>

[[Kim Philby]], a double agent with primary allegiance to the [[Soviet Union]], was a correspondent for the newspaper in Spain during the [[Spanish Civil War]] of the late 1930s. Philby was admired for his courage in obtaining high-quality reporting from the front lines of the bloody conflict. He later joined British Military Intelligence ([[MI6]]) during [[World War II]], was promoted into senior positions after the war ended, and defected to the [[Soviet Union]] when discovery was inevitable in 1963.<ref>{{cite book |title= Treason in the blood: H. St. John Philby, Kim Philby, and the spy case of the century |first=Anthony |last=Cave Brown |year=1995 |publisher=Robert Hale |location =London |isbn=978-0-7090-5582-2}}</ref>

[[File:Frontpage weekly magazine "The Times" May 15 1940, With headline "The Old prime minister and the new".jpg|thumb|Frontpage weekly magazine ''The Times'', 15 May 1940, with headline: "The old prime minister and the new".]]
Between 1941 and 1946, the left-wing British historian [[E. H. Carr]] was assistant editor. Carr was well known for the strongly pro-Soviet tone of his editorials.<ref>Beloff, Max. "The Dangers of Prophecy" pages 8–10 from ''History Today'', Volume 42, Issue # 9, September 1992 page 9</ref> In December 1944, when fighting broke out in [[Athens]] between the Greek Communist [[Greek People's Liberation Army|ELAS]] and the British Army, Carr in a ''Times'' [[Leading article|leader]] sided with the Communists, leading [[Winston Churchill]] to condemn him and the article in a speech to the House of Commons.<ref>Davies, Robert William. "Edward Hallett Carr, 1892–1982" pages 473–511 from ''Proceedings of the British Academy'', Volume 69, 1983 page 489</ref> As a result of Carr's editorial, ''The Times'' became popularly known during that stage of World War II as "the threepenny ''[[Morning Star (British newspaper)|Daily Worker]]''" (the price of the Communist Party's ''Daily Worker'' being one penny).<ref>Haslam, Jonathan. "We Need a Faith: E.H. Carr, 1892–1982" pages 36–39 from ''History Today'', Volume 33, August 1983 page 37</ref>

[[File:Roy Thomson Cropped.jpg|thumb|left|[[Roy Thomson, 1st Baron Thomson of Fleet|Roy Thomson]]]]
On 3 May 1966, it resumed printing news on the front page – previously the front page had been given over to small advertisements, usually of interest to the moneyed classes in British society. Also in 1966, the [[Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom|Royal Arms]], which had been a feature of the newspaper's masthead since its inception, was abandoned.<ref>{{cite book|last=Hasler|first=Charles|title=The Royal Arms&nbsp;— Its Graphic And Decorative Development|publisher=Jupiter Books|date=1980|page=[https://archive.org/details/royalarmsitsgrap0000hasl/page/302 302]|isbn=978-0904041200|url=https://archive.org/details/royalarmsitsgrap0000hasl/page/302}}</ref>{{Sfn|Stewart|2005|p=63}} In the same year, members of the [[Astor family]] sold the paper to Canadian publishing magnate [[Roy Thomson, 1st Baron Thomson of Fleet|Roy Thomson]]. His [[Thomson Corporation]] brought it under the same ownership as ''[[The Sunday Times]]'' to form [[News UK#Times Newspapers Ltd|Times Newspapers Limited]].<ref>{{cite web |first=Rory |last=Carruthers |title=Company history |url=https://www.thomsonreuters.com/en/about-us/company-history.html |archive-date=24 February 2024 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240224042601/https://www.thomsonreuters.com/en/about-us/company-history.html |website=www.thomsonreuters.com |access-date=11 October 2021}}</ref>

An industrial dispute prompted the management to shut the paper for nearly a year from 1 December 1978 to 12 November 1979.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/13/newsid_2539000/2539795.stm |date=13 November 1979 |title=1979: Times returns after year-long dispute|work=[[BBC News|BBC]] On This Day |archive-date=24 February 2024 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240224042309/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/13/newsid_2539000/2539795.stm}}</ref>

The Thomson Corporation management were struggling to run the business due to the [[1979 energy crisis]] and union demands. Management sought a buyer who was in a position to guarantee the survival of both titles, and had the resources and was committed to funding the introduction of modern printing methods.{{Citation needed|date=December 2019}}

Several suitors appeared, including [[Robert Maxwell]], [[Tiny Rowland]] and [[Lord Rothermere]]; however, only one buyer was in a position to meet the full Thomson remit, Australian media magnate [[Rupert Murdoch]].<ref>{{cite web |title=About us |url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/static/about-us/ |quote=The Times and The Sunday Times were first held under common ownership by Lord Thomson in 1966 as Times Media Limited and were bought by Rupert Murdoch in 1981. Times Media is now part of News UK. Both papers introduced digital subscriptions in 2010 to help ensure a sustainable future for their journalism. |archive-date=24 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240224040515/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/static/about-us/ |url-status=live |location=London |website=thetimes.co.uk |access-date=11 October 2021 |language=en}}</ref> [[Robert Holmes à Court]], another Australian magnate had previously tried to buy ''The Times'' in 1980.<ref>{{cite book |last1=McIlwraith |first1=John |title=Holmes à Court, Michael Robert (1937–1990) |chapter=Michael Robert Holmes à Court (1937–1990) |url=https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/holmes-a-court-michael-robert-12647 |via=Australian Dictionary of Biography |publisher=National Centre of Biography, Australian National University |access-date=11 October 2021 |language=en |orig-year=2007 |volume=17 |year=2007 |archive-date=24 February 2024 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240224035849/https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/holmes-a-court-michael-robert-12647}}</ref>