Talk:General Steam Navigation Company

References for the General Steam Navigation Company

The General Steam Navigation Company, GSN is the subject of at least two academic studies (also see the references on the page):

• "'The Most Indefatigable Activity' The General Steam Navigation Company, 1824–50" by Sarah Palmer in 1982
• "The General Steam Navigation Company c.1850-1913, a business history" by Robert Forrester in 2006

These studies are objective noting the successes and failures of the company. They also treat the methods by which GSN competed. Actions like lowering freight at a certain destination just to bankrupt a small competitor, were not forbidden during the nineteenth century. However, even at the time these actions were not something that GSN would want to be mentioned.

The way in which GSN influenced the media is something to consider when writing about it. Cornford's "A Century of Sea Trading 1824-1924: The General Steam Navigation Company Limited" had a very expensive edition, and was published on behest of the GSN. Nineteenth century newspapers were also not likely to be critical of GSN. Even a casual look at their content shows that a very significant part of the advertisements came from shipping lines. GSN was a big advertiser, and would have big influence with the newspapers. GSN also influenced the media by offering trips to journalists, e.g. Blinkhoolie's story of his 1886 trip to Scotland.Grieg2 (talk) 18:38, 31 October 2022 (UTC)