As with the Daily Mail, we need to study the newspaper from the perspective of audience and industries, linking what we've already learned about the newspaper industry and journalism. Similarly, we need to look at the i newspaper website inews.co.uk just as we studied MailOnline.
Notes from the lesson
The i was launched in October 2010 as the first quality UK daily newspaper to appear in 25 years.
Its major selling point was price and convenience: just 20p at launch (now 60p) and designed to be read quickly, it was aimed at young, ‘time-poor’, middle class commuters who wanted a better quality paper than Metro but didn’t have time for the traditional titles.
The newspaper was originally linked to the Independent, a liberal daily paper that has since stopped its print edition to go digital-only.
The i: key principles and circulation
The i was launched with five key principles:- High quality content
- Pleasing design
- Balanced comment/opinion
- Manageable layout
- Affordable price
The i was designed to create a bitesize version of the Independent, a newspaper that launched in 1986 with the banner “Free from party political bias, free from proprietorial influence”.
This perspective remains the objective of the i newspaper today – but it is generally seen as significantly more liberal and left-wing than newspapers like the Daily Mail.
The i: ownership
The i was launched by Alexander Lebedev, a Russian billionaire who owns the Independent and Evening Standard.
In 2016 it was bought by regional publisher Johnston Press for £24 million. Johnston Press publishes titles such as the Yorkshire Post and the Scotsman alongside around 200 other UK regional titles.
As of October 2018, Johnston Press reported significant financial difficulties and put itself up for sale – likely to lead to the break-up of the company and a new owner for the i. Watch this space!
Audience
The i readership key details (according to YouGov profiles):The i was launched by Alexander Lebedev, a Russian billionaire who owns the Independent and Evening Standard.
In 2016 it was bought by regional publisher Johnston Press for £24 million. Johnston Press publishes titles such as the Yorkshire Post and the Scotsman alongside around 200 other UK regional titles.
As of October 2018, Johnston Press reported significant financial difficulties and put itself up for sale – likely to lead to the break-up of the company and a new owner for the i. Watch this space!
Audience
- Around 61% of readers aged 18-39
- Male 58% - Female 42%
- Around 60% social class ABC1
- Significantly less disposable income than Daily Mail readers
- Likely to work in civil society and charity, media and publishing or community and social care sectors
The i: Friday 21 September
Our chosen edition of the i to use as our CSP - just like the Daily Mail - is Friday 21 September. Consider the following in your analysis:
Media language
Page design, font, text, images, conventions, hard news/soft news, news values.
Narrative
Selection of news: is there an ongoing narrative? How is narrative created by the paper to engage an audience?
Representations
Are any stereotypes reinforced? Is the audience positioned to respond to the story in a certain way?
The i case study: Blog tasks
Work through the following tasks to complete your case study on the i and specifically the 21 September edition of the newspaper.
The i analysis: Friday 21 September
Use your notes from the lesson to answer the following questions.
1) What are the front page stories on the 21 September edition of the i?
2) From your analysis in class, what other stories and topics are covered in this edition of the i? You should address the following pages:
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Pages 5
- Page 6-7
- Pages 11
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 18
- Page 45*
4) Narrative: How is narrative used in this edition of the i? Look at the selection of news: is there an ongoing narrative? How is narrative created by the paper to engage an audience?
5) Representations: Are any stereotypes reinforced? Is the audience positioned to respond to the stories in a certain way? What contrasts can you find with the Daily Mail here?
Add additional notes from class here for future revision. Remember, you will need to write in detail about specific stories from this edition of the i and how these stories are constructed to appeal to the i readership.
*Page 45 of this edition of the i contains a review of former Guardian editor Alan Rusbridger's book on the changes in news and journalism in the last 20 years.
The i: introductory reading
Look at the following articles to give you the background on the i newspaper:
BBC News website: Independent launches new 20p newspaper called i
Campaign magazine: Independent to launch first quality daily newspaper for 25 years
BBC News website: Johnston Press to buy i newspaper for £24m
The i launch campaign and success
Read this Marketing Society case study on the launch of the i newspaper and answer the following questions:
1) What was the research that led to the launch of the i newspaper?
2) How did i target readers and lapsed readers of quality newspapers?
3) What was the target audience and why was this attractive to advertisers?
4) What were the statistics that proved the i newspaper was a success - and that it hadn't 'cannibalised' (taken readers from) other newspapers?
5) What was the background to the i newspaper's launch?
6) What were the objectives for the i newspaper launch?
7) The Independent saw an opportunity in the print newspaper market. How did potential i readers view other newspapers and what product did they want?
8) What were the five key principles of the i?
9) How was the newspaper launched?
10) List three statistics quoted in the final section 'Achievements' to demonstrate the success of the i newspaper's launch.
The i turns five
Read this collection of quotes and messages in the Independent to celebrate the i newspaper's fifth birthday. Answer the following questions:
1) Read Nick Clegg's message ("thoughtful, independent-minded and liberal (with a small 'l')...") What does this tell us about the values and ideologies behind the i newspaper?
2) Why might one of the readers suggest that switching from the Daily Mail to the i has meant their "blood pressure has returned to normal"?
3) Choose three other messages from readers. What do they suggest about the audience pleasures provided by the i newspaper - why do readers love it?
4) Scroll down towards the bottom of the article. What are the campaigns that i have run since their launch in 2010?
5) What do these campaigns tell you about the values and ideologies behind the i newspaper? Do they also tell you something about the readership of the i?
6) What did the critics say when the paper was first launched? Why did many think the paper would fail?
7) Choose three quotes from the critics' reviews and discuss whether these viewpoints remain valid today.
8) Look at the bestselling front page stories from 2011-2015. What do these tell us about the i's values and ideologies - and what do we learn about i readers?
Johnston Press background and research
Read this history of Johnston Press and the news of its impending break-up from veteran Guardian media correspondent Roy Greenslade.
1) How did the company begin?
2) What did Johnston Press do in the 1980s and 1990s?
3) List some of the regional newspapers owned by Johnston Press in its history (you may need to research this separately beyond Greenslade's article).
4) What happened to Johnston Press in the 2000s to the present day?
5) How does Greenslade see the future of Johnston Press - and what might happen to the i newspaper?
Johnston Press buys the i
Read this article from the website Hold The Front Page on the announcement of the Johnston Press purchase of the i newspaper - and the closure of the Independent. Answer the following questions:
1) How much did regional published Johnston Press buy the i for?
2) Who did Johnston Press buy the i from?
3) What did the sale signal for the Independent newspaper?
4) What reasons were provided by Johnston Press CEO Ashley Highfield for buying the i?
5) The comments below the article are overwhelmingly negative. Choose three comments and explain how they criticise Johnston Press and the purchase of the i newspaper.
inews.co.uk - the i newspaper website
Go to inews.co.uk and analyse the stories currently featured:
1) What are the top five stories? Are they examples of soft news or hard news?
2) How is the homepage designed? Do you see similarities with the print edition?
3) Are there examples of ‘clickbait’? What are they?
4) To what extent do the stories you have found on inews.co.uk reflect the values and ideologies of the i newspaper?
5) What similarities and differences are there between MailOnline and the i newspaper website?
Now read this Business Insider feature on the launch of the i newspaper website (which coincided with the purchase of the newspaper by Johnston Press). Answer the following questions:
1) The interview with Johnston Press CEO Ashley Highfield features the claim there will be "no clickbait". Does your analysis of inews.co.uk support this claim?
2) He states the website will "stick very closely to the brand values of the i". What are these?
3) How does he claim inews.co.uk will differ from online rival Buzzfeed?
4) What audience does Highfield want the website to target?
5) Why is the millennial audience less attractive?
Additional reading
In order to develop a comprehensive understanding of all things i, you may want to read the following articles.
Read this editorial from the Independent (original parent paper for the i) regarding their royal coverage. How does this approach differ to the Daily Mail?
Read this BBC News article on the end of the Independent's print edition. Look at the analysis and graphs - what do these suggest about newspapers' future online?
Once again, there is a lot of work here - easily 3-4+ hours reading and writing. You will be given some lesson time to start this but most of this case study work will need to be completed at home - due date specified by your exam class teacher.
Don't forget you also need to keep posting your weekly stories from MailOnline and the i newspaper website too - and we'll be continuing this after half-term (details to follow).
No comments:
Post a Comment