Wikipedia's first sentence called it “american publisher of the new york post”. Today it says “american businesswoman who was the owner and then publisher of the new york post for nearly 40 years”.
Measured, not asserted. Every count, date and revision on this page was taken from Wikipedia's own history and checked against the live article. The words quoted are theirs.
Machine-checked against the full current article on 2026-08-03.
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The opening as it read in 2005
Dorothy Schiff ( March 11 , 1903 — August 30 , 1989 ) was an American publisher of the New York Post , and was owner and publisher for nearly 40 years.1Schiff was born in New York City , and she attended the Bryn Mawr College in Philadelphia . Afterwards she began living as a wealthy debutante . This changed in the 1930s when she married George Backer, a city councillor and a staunch liberal Democrat . Schiff became a strong supporter of the Democratic party and the New Deal .2She was very interested in social services and reform, and was involved in several welfare groups, chief among them the Henry Street Settlement .3In 1939 Schiff bought the majority control of the New York Post , installing Backer as publisher and president. When he resigned due to illness in 1942 , she took up the mantle and became New York 's first female newspaper publisher. After divorcing Backer in 1943 , she married Theodore O. Thackrey, installing him as editor. Under her tenure the Post was devoted to liberalism, supporting trade unions and social welfare. During the 1940s the post featured the most popular columnists of the time, such as Drew Pearson , Eleanor Roosevelt , and Eric Sevareid . She also wrote her own column called "Dear Reader". In 1945 , Schiff launched the Paris-Post , the second ever American newspaper to be published in Paris . It lasted until 1948 . Thackrey left the Post after a disagreement over who to support for presidency in 1948; Thackrey favored Henry A. This caused Thackrey to resign in 1949 , and they divorced a year later. In 1958 Schiff caused controversy by supporting Nelson Rockefeller , after switching her support from Governor Averell Harriman . The Post' s sudden endorsement swung the vote in Rockefeller's favor, and helped to launch his political career. Jeffrey Potter 's Men, Money and Magic: The Story of Dorothy Schiff , a biography about Schiff, was published in 1976 . The book generated significant publicity, which was greatly beneficial after the Post' s circulation was at an all-time low. Schiff sold the Post to Rupert Murdoch in 1976 for a reported $31 million. It is believed that she was pessimistic about the future of afternoon papers in the city. Nevertheless, she remained as consultant until 1981 . She died at her home in New York City on August 30 , 1989 .4
This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 17297040.
The opening as it stood in 2010 23 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Dorothy Schiff (March 11, 1903—August 30, 1989) was an owner and then publisher of the New York Post for nearly 40 years.She was a granddaughter of financier Jacob H. Schiff was interested in social services and reform, and was involved in several welfare groups.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 366304876.
The opening as it stood in 2015
Dorothy Schiff (March 11, 1903 - August 30, 1989) was an owner and then publisher of the New York Post for nearly 40 years. She was a granddaughter of financier Jacob H. Schiff was interested in social services and reform, and was involved in several welfare groups.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 660504764.
The opening as it stood in 2020
American newspaper publisher Dorothy Schiff (March 11, 1903 – August 30, 1989) was an American businesswoman who was the owner and then publisher of the New York Post for nearly 40 years. She was a granddaughter of financier Jacob Schiff . Schiff was interested in social services and reform, and was involved in several welfare groups.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 957819365.
The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023
American newspaper publisher (1903-1989) Dorothy Schiff (March 11, 1903 – August 30, 1989) was an American businesswoman who was the owner and then publisher of the New York Post for nearly 40 years. She was a granddaughter of financier Jacob Schiff . Schiff was interested in social services and reform, and was involved in several welfare groups.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1176367522. This is our newest snapshot; the live article may have moved again since.
Today
Wikipedia's first sentence called it “american publisher of the new york post”. Today it says “american businesswoman who was the owner and then publisher of the new york post for nearly 40 years”. Read the current article and compare.
2005
2010
2015
2020
Oct '23
2025
Counts in the opening at each snapshot. Green: the word gained ground. Red: it was cut. Grey: no change.
What Wikipedia says this is
Every article opens by defining its subject. This one was redefined since 2005, and today's defining sentence is their current revision.
Then
american publisher of the new york post
Now
american businesswoman who was the owner and then publisher of the new york post for nearly 40 years
Struck red text is no longer in the article; dotted amber text was rewritten. Every revision id links to Wikipedia's copy; the text shown is our own saved copy. Data: /data. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA; quoted for the record; not affiliated with Wikipedia.
