Up to this point we have examined the press from the point of view of the audience; our perspective has been that of a London club-man or of a provincial coffee-house newsreader. But the press was not merely the vehicle for news; it was an institution that politicians treated with respect, and attempted to manipulate for their own ends. Although most attempts by politicians to control the press were remarkably unsuccessful, it was not for want of trying; besides, they had a great many means, some coercive, some more subtle, by which they could bully and cajole the producers and distributors of the nation's news.

Doubtless the most direct means of control was through taxation. Throughout the century ministers, partly to increase revenue, but primarily as a means of constraint, taxed papers, pamphlets and advertisements. This affected both the format and quantity of newspapers.