The New York Times Logo PNG
The New York Times logo represents a respectable publication with a distinctive corporate identity. The emblem reflects the standards and rules it has upheld since its founding, its distinctive worldview, and its ability to deliver a real, exclusive experience to readers.
The New York Times began on September 18, 1851, when Henry Jarvis Raymond and George Jones launched the New York Daily Times. The first issue, four pages long and costing one cent, focused on restrained reporting rather than sensationalism.
In 1857, the paper became The New York Times. After Raymond died in 1869, circulation declined as competition grew. In 1896, Adolph Ochs bought the paper for $75,000, lowered the price, and expanded its content. In 1897, the slogan “All the News That’s Fit to Print” appeared.
In 1904, the headquarters moved to Longacre Square, later renamed Times Square. The paper expanded its global reporting and won its first Pulitzer Prize in 1918 for its World War I coverage.
In the 1920s and 1930s, it introduced the crossword in 1925 and a Sunday magazine in 1929. After 1935, Arthur Hays Sulzberger led further growth and international focus.
During World War II, correspondents reported from major fronts. In 1946, the magazine launched a fashion section, and in 1951, it published a 76-page centennial issue.
In 1971, the Pentagon Papers case reached the Supreme Court. In 1976, the paper added color photos, and in 1980, it launched a national edition.
In 1996, nytimes.com marked the shift online. After the 2003 Jayson Blair scandal, the paper tightened editorial controls. In 2011, it introduced a paywall.
By 2020, digital subscriptions surpassed print, and the paper expanded into podcasts such as The Daily.
Meaning and History
The New York Times logo changed rarely and only slightly, though loyal readers noticed even the smallest details. The designers not only redrew the letterforms but also made other, more shocking grammatical changes. For example, they removed the hyphen from the city name and the period after “Times,” which allegedly led 1,000 people to unsubscribe.
What is The New York Times?
It is an American daily newspaper published in New York since 1851. It is large in format and comprises several sections covering all aspects of life.
1851 – 1857
The newspaper that would become The New York Times published its first issue on September 18, 1851, under the name New-York Daily Times. Henry Jarvis Raymond and George Jones founded the daily newspaper in New York. The title combined its place of publication, its daily frequency, and “Times,” a reference to contemporary events. A hyphen separated “New” and “York,” and a period followed “Times.” The original name remained in use until 1857.
Raymond looked to London’s The Times as a model for the newspaper’s nameplate. Its design guided the blackletter treatment that appeared in the first issue. The name ran horizontally across the light-colored paper. Decorative letterforms replaced a frame or separate illustration.
Narrow letters combined heavy vertical strokes with thin connecting lines, pointed terminals, and flourishes. The capital “N,” “Y,” “D,” and “T” had intricate shapes, and portions of some letters extended below the baseline. The printing process left tangible impressions where the black ink was pressed into the paper.
1857 – 19??
In fall 1857, New-York Daily Times became The New-York Times, and the nameplate was reworked. “Daily” was removed, and “The” was added at the beginning. The blackletter style, the hyphen between “New” and “York,” and the final period remained. Both capital “T” letters in “The” and “Times” received similar decorative treatments. The black strokes became heavier, the interior spaces more angular, and the extended lower terminals of the “N” and “Y” added to the ornamental design.
Under George Jones in 1884, large flourishes and curled terminals were added to the “N,” “r,” and “s.” Ten years later, some of the ornament was removed, and the letter edges were smoothed. The interior vertical strokes of both “T” letters ended in arrowheads. After Adolph Ochs acquired the newspaper in 1896, the hyphen was dropped. The title became The New York Times, still ending with a period.
In 1897, the motto “All the News That’s Fit to Print” appeared beside the name. It sat in a separate rectangular box in the upper-left corner of the front page, left of the nameplate.
The descender on the “h” was shortened in 1914. Over the decades, the lettering became more compact while retaining its combination of heavy main strokes and thin connecting lines.
before 1967
The spelling The New York Times took shape after Adolph S. Ochs acquired the newspaper. The new owner and chief executive removed the hyphen between “New” and “York” from the official name and logo. Many readers criticized the change as a violation of grammar rules.
The letterforms were revised again by the end of 1914. The December 30 issue appeared with a shortened descender on the “h.” The version preceding the 1967 update retained arrowhead ornaments inside both “T” letters, a decorative lower loop on the “Y,” and a period after the final “s.”
Closely spaced letters formed a long, dark line. Heavy vertical strokes combined with thin interior lines, while small flourishes varied in thickness and length.
1967 – today
In 1967, work on The New York Times nameplate began with hand revisions to the historic design. Art director Louis Silverstein wanted to give the lettering more weight while preserving its familiar blackletter forms. Working on tracing paper, he thickened the main strokes and refined the thin connecting lines. Edward Benguiat, then director of typographic design at Photo-Lettering, completed the final ink drawing.
The revised nameplate appeared on the front page on February 21, 1967. Diamonds replaced the arrowhead ornaments inside both “T” letters, while the upper flourishes retained their wave-like curves. The lower loop of the “Y” became fuller and rounder. The designers adjusted the letter contours and the balance between black strokes and white spaces. The lettering remained flat and monochromatic, with angular lowercase forms. The designers custom-drew the blackletter characters for the newspaper’s nameplate.
Removing the period after “Times” prompted a wave of letters from readers. Hundreds of supporters of the old design demanded the familiar punctuation’s return. One reader compared the change to plastic surgery on Helen of Troy’s face, while others likened it to losing an ancient landmark. The ink savings were estimated at $41 a year. Following the update, the newspaper lost nearly 1,000 subscribers.
The shortened nameplate remained, and people later remembered Silverstein primarily as the man who removed the period. Other designers subsequently redrew the logo while preserving Benguiat’s foundation in the front-page nameplate.
Font and Colors
Edward Benguiat, who created the original header design, was at Photo-Lettering at the time. The company produced photo compositions from letters, allowing experimentation with optical effects using different alternating lenses. She owned the typeface copyright for The New York Times but granted the newspaper exclusive rights to use it.
The history of typefaces goes back to the distant past, when monks in the Holy Roman Empire developed a writing system called Caroline Minuscule. In Europe, the letters changed markedly and became more vertically compressed. This led to the Blackletter style, and Johannes Gutenberg created the Gothic font. Edward Benguiat “Germanized” the original Old English design by increasing contrast and making the marks heavier.
The New York Times logo has always followed the classic newspaper color scheme. The background is the same white as the first page, and the lettering is black because it is printed with the same ink as the text.