The Contrarian was founded on 8 August 1955 as a weekly paper dedicated to criticising the foundation of a new nation by recent colonists to the island of New Guinea. Although at first unpopular, the magazine quickly became known upon expanding its breadth to satirising the politics of the new nation as a whole, and in such, gaining a great deal of popularity as the first satirical outlet of the country. The Contrarian soon developed its own political standings on issues, and with the formation of the Socialist Party in 1955, the magazine independently aligned itself to leftist movements. In 1956, the magazine was bought by the Papua News Corporation, which allows it to continue publishing independently-edited content.