The Chicago Newspaper Wars apparently involved a scene where thugs managed by one newspaper walked onto a street car and shot everyone reading a rival paper.
Put THAT in your Hawkers game! Some of your jobs become getting the scoop on rivals, burning down rival news stands, organizing the local orphans to act as distribution and, of course, storming the offices of your rivals and dynamiting their printing press.
Ken and Robin Talk About Stuff (Episode 175) talks about the intersection of organized crime and newspapers. Article starts at 19:49.
Hmm. Wonder if that was an inspiration for Meiville for the Runagate Rampant newspaper in Perdido Street station. In a side note, my job is digitising newspapers, and there’s some weird and whacky old Australian papers… (trove.nla.gov.au)
Even leavng aside the violence I never even thought of the idea of Hawkers pushing something that isn’t a “traditional” vice. Great idea.
I did a streamed game of our Cult defaming Scurlock through the Ink Rakes. Journalism = awesome.