Joseph
Moses Levy, the son of Moses Levy and Helena Moses, was born on 15th
December 1812. A member of the Jewish faith,
Levy, after being educated at Bruce Castle School, was sent to Germany
to learn the printing trade. When he returned to England he established
a printing company in Shoe Lane, Fleet Street. Levy became involved
in the newspaper industry and by 1844 he was chief proprietor of the
Sunday Times.
Colonel Arthur Sleigh founded the Daily Telegraph
& Courier in June, 1855, Levy agreed to print
the newspaper. The venture was not a success and when Sleigh was unable
to pay his printing bill, Levy took over the newspaper.
In 1855 there were ten newspapers published in London. The
Times, at sevenpence, was the most expensive and had a circulation
of 10,000. Its two main rivals, the Daily News
and the Morning Post, both cost fivepence.
Levy believed that if he could produce a cheaper newspaper than his
main competitors, he could expand the size of the overall market.
Levy decided that his son, Edward Levy-Lawson,
and Thornton Leigh Hunt, should edit the
newspaper. When he re-launched the newspaper on 17th September, 1855,
Levy used the slogan, "the largest, best, and cheapest newspaper
in the world". Within a few weeks the one penny Daily
Telegraph was outselling The Times
and by January 1856, Levy was able to announce that circulation had
reached 27,000.
The early Daily Telegraph supported
the Liberal Party and progressive causes
such as the campaign against capital punishment. It also urged reform
of the House of Lords and the banning of
corporal punishment in the armed forces.
Levy was heavily involved in the production of the Daily
Telegraph. As well as managing the newspaper he also wrote
theatre and art reviews. Joseph Moses Levy died on 12th October, 1888.
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