Have you ever glanced at the magazines and newspapers stacked at the grocery store checkout and seen headlines about Bat-Boys, celebrity romances with chupacabras, or Bigfoot spotted hanging out with Elvis at a local convenience store? You might be surprised to learn that sensationalist journalism like this isn’t a modern invention—it has deep roots stretching back nearly two centuries.
In 1835, The New York Sun published a series of articles that became known as the "Great Moon Hoax," claiming that astronomer Sir John Herschel had discovered life on the Moon. Written by Richard Adams Locke, these stories described fantastical lunar creatures such as bat-like humanoids and unicorns. Locke presented the articles as factual reports, supposedly based on Herschel’s observations through a powerful telescope at the Cape of Good Hope. The hoax captivated the public and dramatically increased the paper’s circulation.
The New York Sun, founded by Benjamin Henry Day in 1833, was one of the first newspapers to adopt the penny press model, offering affordable news to a broad audience. The Sun emphasized sensational stories, local events, and human-interest pieces, in contrast to the more reserved reporting of established newspapers. Day’s strategy proved highly successful, and the Sun soon had the largest circulation in the United States.
Locke’s goal in creating the Moon Hoax was to satirize public fascination with speculative science and highlight readers’ gullibility. While intended as satire, many readers initially believed the stories, eagerly awaiting each installment. It wasn’t until September 16, 1835, that the Sun quietly admitted the series was fabricated.
The legacy of the Moon Hoax shows the enduring power of sensational journalism. It demonstrates how the press can shape public perception and how captivating storytelling can drive readership—a phenomenon that continues today in tabloids and popular media. The incident also underscores the importance of critical thinking and skepticism when consuming news, lessons as relevant now as they were nearly 200 years ago.
Citations:
Burrows, E. G. (1999). Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898. Oxford University Press.
Day, B. H. (1833). The New York Sun. Retrieved from https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/
Goodman, M. (2008). The Sun and the Moon: The Remarkable True Account of Hoaxers, Showmen, Dueling Journalists, and Lunar Man-Bats in Nineteenth-Century New York. Basic Books.
Kornél Vida, I. (2012). The "Great Moon Hoax" of 1835. Hungarian Journal of English and American Studies, 18(1), 75–92.
Locke, R. A. (1835). The Moon Hoax; or, a discovery that the moon has a vast population of human beings. Retrieved from https://www.gutenberg.org/files/62779/62779-h/62779-h.htm
Spencer, D. R. (2007). The Yellow Journalism: The Press and America's Emergence as a World Power. Northwestern University Press.