Wikipedia's first sentence called it “executive who built cbs from a small radio network to the dominant television network in america”. Today it says “american businessman”.
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.
We saved snapshots of this article over twenty years; you are reading the 2005 one. Red dashes: removed from Wikipedia since.Pale dots: rewritten; the numbered note shows what it says now.Red text: written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot.1 tap a number or a side note to jump between them
The opening as it read in 2005
William Samuel Paley ( September 28 , 1901 - October 26 , 1990 ) was an executive who built CBS from a small radio network to the dominant television network in America.1Paley became interested in radio through developing ads for his family's cigar business in Chicago . He invested in Columbia Phonographic Broadcasting System, a small radio network, and became its president in 1928. Paley gave affiliated stations free programming in return for their agreement to broadcast sponsored shows at particular times, expanding the network from 22 stations to 114 stations in a decade. CBS expanded into TV and early through Paley's strong, some would say ruthless, maneuvering rode the post- World War II boom in that medium to pass NBC , which had dominated radio. Paley became the best-known executive in network television, personifying the control and vision which marked the industry through its heydey of the 1980s. The Museum of Television & Radio hosts an annual panel series, with casts and crews from new series, that is named after Paley. Paley was married to socialite and fashion icon Babe Paley.2
This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 16226576.
The opening as it stood in 2010 7 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
William Samuel Paley (September 28, 1901 – October 26, 1990) was the chief executive who built Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) from a small radio network into one of the foremost radio and television network operations in the United States .Paley, Builder of CBS, Dies at 89" .Paley, who personified the power, glamour, allure and influence of CBS Inc., the communications empire he built, died last night at his home in Manhattan.He was 89 years old. : Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= ( help )
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 366366815.
The opening as it stood in 2015
Paley (September 28, 1901 – October 26, 1990) was the chief executive who built Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) from a small radio network into one of the foremost radio and television network operations in the United States . Paley, Builder of CBS, Dies at 89" . Paley, who personified the power, glamour, allure and influence of CBS Inc., the communications empire he built, died last night at his home in Manhattan. He was 89 years old. : Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= ( help )
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 665278976.
The opening as it stood in 2020 1 passage from the previous snapshot no longer appear
American television executive This article is about the broadcasting executive.William Samuel Paley (September 28, 1901 – October 26, 1990) was an American business personality, primarily involved in the media, and best known as the chief executive who built the Columbia Broadcasting System ( CBS ) from a small radio network into one of the foremost radio and television network operations in the United States of America. Paley, Builder of CBS, Dies at 89" . Paley, who personified the power, glamour, allure and influence of CBS Inc., the communications empire he built, died last night at his home in Manhattan. He was 89 years old.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 962163948.
The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023
American television executive (1901–1990) This article is about the broadcasting executive. William Samuel Paley (September 28, 1901 – October 26, 1990) was an American businessman, primarily involved in the media, and best known as the chief executive who built the Columbia Broadcasting System ( CBS ) from a small radio network into one of the foremost radio and television network operations in the United States . He was awarded the Carlos Manuel de Cespedes National Order of Merit by the Cuban government in recognition of his efforts to foster greater understanding between the peoples of Cuba and the United States of America. Paley, Builder of CBS, Dies at 89" . Paley, who personified the power, glamour, allure and influence of CBS Inc., the communications empire he built, died last night at his home in Manhattan. He was 89 years old.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1177955818.
The opening as it stood in 2025 1 passage from the previous snapshot no longer appear
American television executive (1901–1990) This article is about the broadcasting executive. William Samuel Paley (September 28, 1901 – October 26, 1990) was an American businessman, primarily involved in the media, and best known as the chief executive who built the Columbia Broadcasting System ( CBS ) from a small radio network into one of the foremost radio and television network operations in the United States . Paley, Builder of CBS, Dies at 89" . Paley, who personified the power, glamour, allure and influence of CBS Inc., the communications empire he built, died last night at his home in Manhattan. He was 89 years old.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1294806084. This is our newest snapshot; the live article may have moved again since.
Today
Wikipedia's first sentence called it “executive who built cbs from a small radio network to the dominant television network in america”. Today it says “american businessman”. 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
executive who built cbs from a small radio network to the dominant television network in america
Now
american businessman
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.
