In almost every market in the world, the market for traditional newspapers is on a downward trend. Despite publishers’ best efforts - free CDs, discounts on hotel stays and lottery tickets - for most newspapers each year is tougher than the last. The internet and 24-hour TV news and sport has nibbled away at print’s relevance.
As with many things, in the UAE, the market is different. Since 2003, in English language alone, Dubai has launched a free Metro, an evening paper, a new national, a local print run of the UK’s Times, and a weekly city paper. Of course, the evening paper has since gone bust, the Metro is on its arse, and the new national has been relaunched as a business daily, but none of this has diminished publishers’ appetite for print. There would be more papers if publishers could get hold of a license.
And now The National, billed as a “quality broadsheet”, and the first fruits of Abu Dhabi Media. It will have nearly 200 journalists, a couple of years to break even and a launch budget to float a battleship.
The paper has been met with almost universal criticism from the Dubai media community. Irrelevant, toothless and a ‘twelve month pension gift for has-been and never-was hacks’ being pretty much the gist of the comments.
19th Floor is more optimistic. The National should be welcomed for what it is, not what it isn’t.
New competition can lift the entire market. Gulf News has already beefed up its local news (its ‘The Nation’ section) in response. But only an idiot would accept Gulf News as the acme of UAE newspaper ambition. Someone must be able to do better. More journalists asking questions, and more options for getting this information to an audience is a good thing. If The National does print the story, maybe the journalists own blogs or book deals will.
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