A new national paper from Trinity Mirror is set to launch next week, it has been confirmed.
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But Trinity Mirror insists there is still an appetite for the printed word, and The New Day will appeal to new readers.
One of Britain’s largest newspaper publishers is taking an innovative leap with the first of its kind “standalone national daily” to be launched in the past 30 years just as another wraps up its print edition.
The daily title will be available free from around 40,000 retailers on its first day and will cost 25p for a two-week trial following that.
“There are a lot of people who don’t buy newspapers at the moment, not because they don’t like newspapers but because what is now available does not correspond to their expectations”, said Alison Philips, editor in chief of the newspaper.
Fox told Radio 4’s Today programme: “It’s an idea we’ve been working on for over a year after talking to thousands of readers”.
She said the paper will be packed full of comment and opinion from all sides of the political debate, but unlike others it will be politically neutral and will not have an editorial leader column.
Earlier this month, the Independent newspaper, founded in 1986, published its final print edition and announced it was changing to a digital-only format.
Phillips said she was targeting a “huge area in the middle” of readers of the Sun and readers of the Guardian, a group of people who didn’t want to be “told what to think” any longer.
It said in a statement this morning: “The New Day will cover news and topical content but with a modern style and tone, aimed at a wide audience of women and men who want something different from what is now available”.
“Revitalising print is a core part of our strategy in parallel with digital transformation and there doesn’t have to be a choice between the two – newspapers can live in the digital age if they have been created to offer something different”. Since the digital manifestation of the newspaper is going to be very socially led, that aligns what the publisher is trying to do with the newspaper itself in terms of being a modern relay of news on a daily basis.
“Trinity’s knowledge of the market is intimate, and the promo budget for The New Day will be significant”.
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The title will operate on social media platforms but will not have its own website.
