This article explores the financing of the newspaper content most closely identified with political commentary in the second half of the eighteenth century: the ‘letters to the editor’. Based on an important but largely unnoticed paragraph from John Trusler’s London Adviser and Guide, and a published excerpt from the account books of the Morning Herald, it argues that, while newspaper proprietors paid correspondents primarily for news and miscellany, they could also pay for letters of commentary (or publish them free of charge), if these were particularly well written and on topics of notable public interest. Importantly, however, they would also charge authors wishing to disseminate political texts, especially if these promulgated the commercial or political interests of individuals or larger interest groups.

本文探讨了 18 世纪下半叶与政治评论最密切相关的报纸内容的融资：“给编辑的信”。基于约翰·特鲁斯勒 (John Trusler) 的《伦敦顾问和指南》中一段重要但基本上未被注意到的段落，以及《先驱晨报》账簿中已发表的摘录，它争辩说，虽然报社经营者主要向记者支付新闻和杂事费用，但他们也可以支付评论信（或免费出版），如果这些评论写得特别好并且涉及显着公共利益的话题。然而，重要的是，他们也会向希望传播政治文本的作者收费，特别是如果这些文章宣传了个人或更大利益集团的商业或政治利益。