Daily Bugle
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Daily Bugle is a fictional New York City newspaper that is a regular fixture in the Marvel Universe, most prominently in Spider-Man and its derivative media. The company first appeared in Fantastic Four vol. 1 #2.
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[edit] History
The Bugle was founded in 1897 and has been published daily ever since. Tabloid in format like its rival The Daily Globe, the Bugle appears in several editions daily. The publisher of the Bugle, J. Jonah Jameson, began his journalistic career as a reporter for the Bugle while still in high school. Jameson purchased the then-floundering Bugle with inheritance funds and turned the paper into a popular success. Other magazines published from time-to-time include the revived Now Magazine and the now-defunct Woman Magazine.
J. Jonah Jameson, Inc. purchased the Goodman Building on 39th Street and Second Avenue in 1968 and moved its entire editorial and publishing facilities there. Now called the Daily Bugle Building, the office complex is forty-six stories tall, and is capped by the Daily Bugle logo in 30-foot letters on the roof. There are loading docks in the rear of the building, reached by a back alley. Three floors are devoted to the editorial office of the Bugle and two sub-basement levels to the printing presses, while the rest of the floors are rented.
(However, a panel in issue 105 of The Amazing Spider-Man showed the Bugle building located near a street sign at the corner of Madison Avenue and a street in the East Fifties (the second digit was not shown). This suggests that the building may have been relocated at some point.)
The newspaper is noted for its anti-superhero slant, especially concerning Spider-Man, whom the paper constantly smears as a part of its editorial policy. However, the Editor-in-Chief, "Robbie" Robertson, the only subordinate to Jameson who is not intimidated by him, has worked to moderate it.
Due to declining circulation, Jameson has conceded to Robertson's objections and has created a special feature section of the paper called The Pulse which focuses on superheroes. In addition, the paper also intermittently ran a glossy magazine called Now Magazine.
Recently in the pages of the New Avengers, the team decided to strike a deal with Jameson regarding exclusive content in exchange for removing the strong Anti-Spider-Man vibe from the newspaper, to which Jameson agreed. Merely one day later, Jameson had already gone back on his word with Iron Man, using the headline "a wanted murderer (Wolverine), an alleged ex-member of a terrorist organisation (Spider-Woman) and a convicted heroin-dealer (Luke Cage) are just some of the new recruits set to bury the once good name of the Avengers", although he didn't insult Spider-Man. This caused Jessica Jones to sell the first pictures of her newborn baby to one of the Bugle's competitors instead.
In the first issue of Runaways Vol. 2, Victor Mancha states in an exchange about Spider-Man that "The only people who think he's a criminal are Fox News and the Daily Bugle. And the Bugle is, like, the least respected newspaper in New York City." The paper's major named competition is The Daily Globe, which implicitly takes a more balanced look at the superhero. For instance, after Peter Parker revealed he is Spider-Man and the Bugle planned to sue him for fraud, the paper itself was put on the defensive with front page accusations from The Globe (with information secretly supplied by Bugle reporter Betty Brant) of libeling the superhero.
The adventures of the staff of the newspaper beyond Peter Parker have been depicted in two series, Daily Bugle and The Pulse.
[edit] Staff Members
| Character | Job Title | Employed/Seen working in | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current Staff Members | ||||
| J. Jonah Jameson | Publisher | Amazing Spider-Man vol. 1 #1 (1963) | ||
| Joseph "Robbie" Robertson | Editor-in-Chief | Amazing Spider-Man vol. 1 #51 (1967) | ||
| Colm Glover | Reporter | Marvel Visions #34 | Named but yet to be seen | |
| Peter Parker | Photographer,Superhero, usually freelance | |||
| Abner Abernathy | Marvel Team-Up vol. 1 #115 | |||
| Tom Amos | Reporter | Marvel Visions #21 | Named but yet to be seen | |
| Ron Barney | Reporter | Marvel Visions #14 | Named but yet to be seen. | |
| Mr. Benerstein | ||||
| Mike Berino | Reporter | Marvel Visions #14 | Never seen, only named. | |
| Miriam Birchwood | Gossip Columnist | Marvel: Heroes and Legends 1996 | Attended Reed and Sue Richards' wedding. | |
| Phil Bostwich | Reporter | 'Marvel Visions #29 | Never seen, only named. | |
| Betty Brant | Reporter (current) Administrative Assistant (formerly) |
Amazing Spider-Man vol. 1 #4 (1963) | ||
| Kenny Brown | Annex #1 | |||
| Isabel "Izzy" Bunsen | Science Editor | Spectacular Spider-Man volume 2 #124 | ||
| Meredith Campbell | Intern | Green Goblin #7 | ||
| Carl | Spider-Man #13 | |||
| Cole Cooper | Photographer | Web of Spider-Man #113 | ||
| Kathryn Cushing | City Editor | Web of Spider-Man #5 | ||
| Vickie Danner | Washington DC liaison | Spider-Man: Arachnis Project #3 | ||
| Dickinson | Reporter | Deadline #1 | ||
| Anthea Dupres | Reporter | Clan Destine #7 | ||
| Ken Ellis | Reporter | Web of Spider-Man #118 | Dubbed the Scarlet Spider... the Scarlet Spider. | |
| Christine Everhart | ||||
| Mark Ewing | Reporter | Conspiracy #1 | Investigated the alleged conspiracy involving the group Control | |
| Tony Falcone | Copy Writer | |||
| Katherine Kat Farrell | Reporter | Deadline #1 | ||
| Tim Gluohy | Reporter | Marvel Visions #15 | Named but yet to be seen. | |
| Melvin Gooner | Reporter | Spider-Man #8 | ||
| Glory Grant | Administrative Assistant | Peter Parker: Spectacular Spider-Man #2 | ||
| Jeffrey Haight | Photographer | Dr. Octopus: Negative Exposure #1 | former boyfriend of Anna Kefkin, made alliance with Dr. Octopus in desperate effort to gain a front page photograph | |
| Matt Hicksville | Reporter | Marvel Visions #21 | Named but yet to be seen | |
| Matt Idelson | Reporter | Marvel Visions #8 | Named but yet to be seen | |
| Jill | Tangled Web of Spider-Man #11 | |||
| Miss Kay | Tangled Web of Spider-Man #11 | |||
| Kim | Amazing Spider-Man vol. 1 #349 | |||
| Simon LaGrange | Daredevil vol. 1 #242 | |||
| Lessman | Reporter | Amazing Spider-Man vol. 1 #187 | ||
| Maggie Lorca | Reporter | Spider-Man #29 | ||
| Judy Lumley | Fashion Editor | Peter Parker: Spider-Man #3 | ||
| Ann Macintosh | Columnist | Amazing Spider-Man Annual #18 | ||
| Marge | Spider-Man Unlimited #13 | |||
| Joy Mercado | Reporter | Moon Knight vol. 1 #33 (September 1983) | A tough, intelligent, sassy investigative reporter, a friend of Peter Parker who may suspect he is really Spider-Man. | |
| Jan Parsec | Reporter | Marvel Visions #25 | Named but yet to be seen | |
| Victor Paunchilito | Writer | Amazing Spider-Man vol. 1 #223 | ||
| Victor Pei | Assistant Photography Editor | Spider-Man #3 | ||
| Bill Price | Reporter | Civil War Frontline # 8 | ||
| Tony Reeves | Photographer | Spider-Man Unlimited #6 | ||
| Rossi | Web of Spider-Man #40 | |||
| Arnold Sibert | Entertainment Editor/Movie Critic | Spider-Man: Gathering of the Sinister Six | became involved in opposing a plot of Mysterio | |
| Joe Sidesaddle | Reporter | Marvel Visions #27 | Named but yet to be seen | |
| Smitty | ||||
| Charles Snow | Reporter | Marvel Team-Up Volume 1 #79 | ||
| Bill Tatters | Reporter | Marvel Vision #23 | Named but yet to be seen | |
| Wendy Thorton | Sports columnist | Amazing Spider-Man Volume 1 #252 | ||
| Maury Toeitch | Reporter | Marvel Visions #26 | Named but yet to be seen | |
| Mr. Toomey | Tangled Web of Spider-Man #11 | |||
| Dilbert Trilby | Obituary writer | Spider-Man Unlimited#3 | ||
| Lynn Walsh | Intern | Green Goblin #1 | ||
| Spence Williams | Intern | Tangled Web of Spider-Man #11 | ||
| Angela Yin | Photographer | Spectacular Spider-Man volume 2 #215 | Sister of the criminal Dragonfly (IV) | |
| Former Staff Members | ||||
| Nick Bandouveris | Reporter | Uncanny X-Men #339 | Killed by Bastion in Uncanny X-Men #339; his murder is the reason JJJ didn't take the Xavier Files from Bastion | |
| Lance Bannon | Photographer | Amazing Spider-Man Volume 1 #208 | Currently deceased, killed by F.A.C.A.D.E. in Web of Spider-Man #114 | |
| Mrs. Brant | Jameson's Former Secretary | Untold Tales of Spider-Man #12 | Betty's mother; put into coma prior to Amazing Spider-Man #1 | |
| Jacob Conover | Reporter | Daredevil vol. 1 #131 | In jail after being revealed to be the criminal Rose | |
| Ethan Edwards | Reporter | Marvel Knights Spider-Man #13 | ||
| Thomas Fireheart | Owner | |||
| Frederick Foswell | Reporter | Amazing Spider-Man vol. 1 #10 (1964) | Got fired from the Bugle then rehired again in Amazing Spider-Man vol. 1 #23 (1965); died in Amazing Spider-Man #52 | |
| Cliff Garner | Reporter | Invaders vol. 1 #3 Conspiracy #1 (named) |
formerly of the Air Force, investigated the possible conspiracy of Control, slain by co-conspiracy theorist General Edward Harrison in Conspiracy #2 | |
| William Walter Goldman | Owner Publisher |
Amazing Spider-Man vol. 1 #331 | ||
| Goodman | Publisher | Marvels #1 | Publisher in the 1940s, name is probably a reference to Martin Goodman, first publisher of Marvel Comics. | |
| Amber Grant | freelance photographer | Omega the Unknown #5 | made Peter Parker envious of her ability to tell off Jameson and still sell to him; current status unknown | |
| Old Man Jameson | Editor Reporter |
Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos #110 (May, 1973) | Presumed to be JJJ's father, David Jameson. | |
| Jessica Jones | Superhero correspondent and consultant | The Pulse #1 (April 2004) | Resigned after Jameson trashed then-boyfriend, Luke Cage in an article about the New Avengers | |
| Nick Katzenberg | Reporter | Web of Spider-Man #50 | Currently deceased, died of lung cancer in Amazing Spider-Man #385 | |
| Terri Kidder | Reporter | The Pulse #2 | Currently deceased, killed by the Green Goblin in The Pulse #2 | |
| Ned Leeds | Reporter | Amazing Spider-Man vol. 1 #25 (1964) | Currently deceased, killed by the Foreigner's men in Spider-Man vs. Wolverine #1 | |
| Irene Merryweather | Reporter | Cable #62 (freelance) Soldier X #1 (salaried) | Fired after Cable&Deadpool #6 | |
| Mystique | Reporter | X-Factor vol. 1 | Seen working as a Daily Bugle reporter in X-Factor | |
| Norman Osborn | Owner | Bought Daily Bugle in Spectacular Spider-Man #250 | Lost control of Bugle following Peter Parker: Spider-Man #98 | |
| Jess Patton | Tangled Web of Spider-Man #1 | Killed and body taken by the Thousand | ||
| Chuck Self | Reporter | Punisher #15 | Handcuffed himself to the Punisher to get a story; died from falling into a woodchipper in Punisher #15 | |
| Phil Sheldon | Photographer | Marvels #1 | Retired in Marvels #4 | |
| Ben Urich | Reporter | Daredevil vol. 1 #158 (1978) | Resigns in Civil War: Front Line #10 | |
| Phil Urich | Intern | Green Goblin #1 | Currently working with Excelsior | |
| Swanson | Reporter | Deadline #1 | Fired | |
| William "Billy" Walters | Photographer | Spectacular Spider-Man vol. 1 #235 | Left Bugle in Sensational Spider-Man #31 to care for his ageing Mother. | |
[edit] Limited series
[edit] Alternate versions
In the Amalgam Comics universe, the Daily Bugle is a sleazy tabloid, and JJ Jameson tries get photos which depict Spider-Boy as being romantically linked to female heroes, like Insect Queen, as well as other sensationalist stories. Pete Ross (Spider-Boy) works there as a photographer. Other staff members include Tana Moon and Jack Ryder. There is also a Gotham Bugle, run by J. Jonah White, which employs red-headed, chain-smoking Jimmy Urich.
In the Ultimate Marvel universe, the Bugle is much the same as in the 616 version. The main difference is that Peter Parker is not employed as a photographer, but works on the newspaper's website. The newspaper plays less of a role in Ultimate Spider-Man than it did in the comics portraying the equivalent period of the 616 Spider-Man's career.
In the Marvel 1602 setting, Jameson is publisher of the first "news-sheet" in the New World; the Daily Trumpet.
Coincidentally, the Daily Bugle was also the newspaper where Micky Moran, alter-ego of Marvelman, worked as a copyboy in the original 1950s issues (also featuring as a publication that gave Moran freelance work in Alan Moore's 1980s revival).
[edit] Other media
Since 2006, Marvel has published a monthly Daily Bugle newspaper reporting on the company's publications and their authors. The newspaper format first appeared to promote Marvel's crossover events Civil War and House of M.
[edit] Film
- The Bugle is seen in most media adaptations of Spider-Man, the most prominent appearance being in the 2002 Spider-Man film and its sequels. In the films, it is seen as a tabloid in the style of the New York Post. In the Spider-Man movies, the Bugle is housed in the Flatiron Building.
- In Frank Darabont's Academy Award nominated film, The Shawshank Redemption, Andy Dufresne, played by Tim Robbins sends a package to "the Portland Daily Bugle" containing the information about Shawshank's warden cheating money.
[edit] Video games
- In the arcade and console-imported game Marvel Super Heroes the Bugle is Spiderman's stage. The fighting takes place on a platform that is first going vertical and then across the Daily Bugle.
- In the multi-platform video game Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects the Daily Bugle is a recurring battleground throughout the story mode and available in the versus mode. Here the rooftop is surrounded by three destructible walls, and covered with explosive barrels, air conditioners, pipes, and poles for use in battle. Even the trademark letters that form "Daily Bugle" are available for throwing at enemies once damaged.
- In the Ghost Rider videogame released in 2007, The Daily Bugle appears in the challenge mode of the game. It even has big spiderwebs in the corners, which is an obvious reference to Spider-Man.
