Former New York Times publisher Arthur Ochs Sulzberger has died at the age of 86.

The newspaper reported Mr Sulzberger’s family as saying he died at his home in Southampton, New York, after a long illness

He retired in 1992 after three decades at the paper’s helm and was succeeded by his son, Arthur Jr. Mr Sulzberger’s family has controlled the newspaper sincehis grandfather, Arthur Ochs, acquired it in 1896.

The company has struggledin recent years but duringMr Sulzberger’s tenure it reached new levels of influence and profit.

The paper received more than 30 Pulitzer Prizes and won a historic 1964 legal ruling that strengthened First Amendment protections for the press.