The study of the sources of construction of mass historical representations is one of the most important areas of modern Russian memory studies. This research analyzes the reflection of the events of Russian history on the pages of the newspapers “St. Petersburg Vedomosti” and “Moscow Vedomosti” during the second half of the 18th century. The most frequently mentioned heroes and events of Russian history are determined. Conclusions are drawn about the dependence of the content of newspapers on the state and social order.