The first issue of O Panorama was published in May 1837 as the organ of the Sociedade Propagadora dos Conhecimentos Úteis [Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge]. The society operated on a profit-driven basis, funded by shares: its initial capital of 10 contos de réis was divided into 2,000 shares, and Queen Maria II was among the original shareholders—a noteworthy fact mentioned in the index to the first volume (1837). The initial choice for chief editor was António Feliciano de Castilho, who declined the invitation, recommending Alexandre Herculano instead. Herculano had resigned the previous year as librarian of the Biblioteca Pública do Porto [Porto Public Library]. Until 1839, he served as the director, editor-in-chief, and paginator of O Panorama (J. Baptista, Alexandre Herculano jornalista [Alexandre Herculano, the journalist], pp. 23-24).

The first issue of O Panorama included a statement of the programme's objectives, elaborated in an "Introduction" by Herculano (written anonymously, as per the founders’ decision for editors). It proclaimed: "Given the current state of education and progress, the most important task is to foster a love of learning among all nations and to make it accessible to every social class. This reflects the spirit of our age—a tendency that is both noble and beneficial." (...) "We must acknowledge that the Portuguese nation is among those that have least followed this progressive movement of humanity. Our people lack knowledge of many things they ought to know, and this educational deficit is evident even among the social classes that should be well-educated by virtue of their position. Even among men devoted to literature, one often finds a lack of basic understanding in areas outside their specific fields of study. Science in Portugal still lags far behind the unified character it is steadily acquiring in other nations." (...) "Thus, the Sociedade Propagadora dos Conhecimentos Úteis deemed it necessary to follow the example of more advanced countries and publish a newspaper that would provide diverse instruction to benefit all social classes, adapting it to the state of underdevelopment in which we still find ourselves. This noble endeavour will surely be praised and supported by all who genuinely care for the civilisation of their homeland" ( O Panorama , Issue 1, p. 2, 1837). This reaffirmed the premise outlined a few months earlier: This reaffirmed the premise outlined a few months earlier: the aim was to use the newspaper as a tool to address the lack of education among the lower social classes (possibly a proto-demopaedic approach?) and the apparent inadequacies in higher education. The newspaper was intended to have an interclass character, functioning as a vehicle for social regeneration and civilisation, contributing to societal advancement and national progress (M. dos Santos, Intelectuais Portugueses na Primeira Metade de Oitocentos [Portuguese Intellectuals in the First Half of the 19th Century], p. 165).

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