Progressive Review
Encyclopedia
Progressive Review, or ProRev, is an American online alternative publication that started in 1964 as the Idler
newspaper. Sam Smith
, the editor, starting publishing online in 1995, and in 2004 Smith stopped publishing the Progressive Review in a hard copy edition.
A email news digest, called Undernews, is published several times a week, consisting of an entertaining and idiosyncratic selection of news excerpts from a wide variety of sources together with pithy commentaries by Smith himself.
In 1966, the Idler's editor, Sam Smith, started a community newspaper on Capitol Hill
, the Capitol East Gazette, to serve a largely poor, black neighborhood of Washington DC. Aided by a $2,000 grant from a local Lutheran church, the Gazette went on to cover such issues as plans to build a huge network of freeways in the city, the war on poverty, public education, neighborhood battles, and urban planning. Smith also became a vociferous advocate of statehood for the District of Columbia.
DC Gazette became an early and articulate voice opposing the Vietnam War
.
Boris Weintraub in the Washington Star
described the Gazette as "a combination of things Americans profess to hold dear: iconoclasm, a deeply felt sense of community and, above all, independence."
, the Bush family
, and scandals surrounding the Clinton Administration were widely cited.
In 1994, Smith started sending out email updates. The following year, he launched a website, which subsequently grew to be one of the most popular websites for progressive politics.
The Progressive Review has been a finalist in five of the eight years in which Utne Reader
Alternative Press Awards have been given. Twice has had articles selected by Project Censored
as one of the top ten under-covered stories of the year.
Idler
An idler is a mechanical device such as an idler pulley or idler wheel that is secondary to the main transfer of power in a mechanical system. They are support rollers on which conveyor belts move...
newspaper. Sam Smith
Sam Smith (journalist)
Sam Smith is an American journalist and political activist who was an early pioneer in alternative media. He was also involved in the establishment of the Green Party of the United States. Several times a week, Smith publishes an email news digest, Undernews.-Biography:Smith was born in Washington...
, the editor, starting publishing online in 1995, and in 2004 Smith stopped publishing the Progressive Review in a hard copy edition.
A email news digest, called Undernews, is published several times a week, consisting of an entertaining and idiosyncratic selection of news excerpts from a wide variety of sources together with pithy commentaries by Smith himself.
Early history
Progressive Review is the fourth generation of a publication that started in 1964 as the Idler.In 1966, the Idler's editor, Sam Smith, started a community newspaper on Capitol Hill
Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.
Capitol Hill, aside from being a metonym for the United States Congress, is the largest historic residential neighborhood in Washington D.C., stretching easterly in front of the United States Capitol along wide avenues...
, the Capitol East Gazette, to serve a largely poor, black neighborhood of Washington DC. Aided by a $2,000 grant from a local Lutheran church, the Gazette went on to cover such issues as plans to build a huge network of freeways in the city, the war on poverty, public education, neighborhood battles, and urban planning. Smith also became a vociferous advocate of statehood for the District of Columbia.
DC Gazette
In 1969, the paper was renamed the DC Gazette and became a citywide alternative newspaper. In subsequent years, contributors would include:- James RidgewayJames RidgewayJames Ridgeway is a prominent American investigative journalist.-Career history:Ridgeway began his career as a contributor to The New Republic, Ramparts, and The Wall Street Journal....
, - Jim HightowerJim HightowerJames Allen "Jim" Hightower is an American syndicated columnist, activist and author.-Life and career:Born in Denison, Texas, Hightower came from a working class background. He worked his way through college as assistant general manager of the Denton Chamber of Commerce and later landed a spot as...
, - Eugene McCarthyEugene McCarthyEugene Joseph "Gene" McCarthy was an American politician, poet, and a long-time member of the United States Congress from Minnesota. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1949 to 1959 and the U.S. Senate from 1959 to 1971.In the 1968 presidential election, McCarthy was the first...
- Paul KrassnerPaul KrassnerPaul Krassner is an author, journalist, stand-up comedian, and the founder, editor and a frequent contributor to the freethought magazine The Realist, first published in 1958...
- Tom ShalesTom ShalesThomas William "Tom" Shales is an American critic of television programming and operations. He is best known as TV critic for The Washington Post; in 1988, Shales received the Pulitzer Prize...
, writer - Joel SiegelJoel SiegelJoel Siegel was an American film critic for the ABC morning news show Good Morning America for over 25 years. Born to a Jewish family of Romanian descent, and raised in Los Angeles, California, he graduated cum laude from UCLA. His Romanian-born grandmother from Botoşani survived the Triangle...
, movie critic - Patricia Griffith, arts critic
- Roland Freeman, photographer
- John Wiebenson, urban planning comic strip
DC Gazette became an early and articulate voice opposing the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
.
Boris Weintraub in the Washington Star
Washington Star
The Washington Star, previously known as the Washington Star-News and the Washington Evening Star, was a daily afternoon newspaper published in Washington, D.C. between 1852 and 1981. For most of that time, it was the city's newspaper of record, and the longtime home to columnist Mary McGrory and...
described the Gazette as "a combination of things Americans profess to hold dear: iconoclasm, a deeply felt sense of community and, above all, independence."
Progressive Review
In 1984, DC Gazette was renamed Progressive Review and evolved into a bimonthly format. Smith's articles on the savings and loan scandal, the problems of urban America, the first Gulf WarGulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, the Bush family
Bush family
The Bush family is a prominent American family. Along with many members who have been successful bankers and businessmen, across three generations the family includes two U.S. Senators, one Supreme Court Justice, two Governors, one Vice President and two Presidents...
, and scandals surrounding the Clinton Administration were widely cited.
In 1994, Smith started sending out email updates. The following year, he launched a website, which subsequently grew to be one of the most popular websites for progressive politics.
The Progressive Review has been a finalist in five of the eight years in which Utne Reader
Utne Reader
Utne Reader is an American bimonthly magazine. The magazine collects and reprints articles on politics, culture, and the environment from generally alternative media sources, including journals, newsletters, weeklies, zines, music and DVDs...
Alternative Press Awards have been given. Twice has had articles selected by Project Censored
Project Censored
Project Censored is a non-profit, media criticism and investigative journalism project within the Sonoma State University Foundation. It is managed through the School of Social Sciences at the university....
as one of the top ten under-covered stories of the year.