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Media in the United Kingdom - The writtenword - the press
 
National newspapersThere are 10 daily morning newspapers and nine Sundaynewspapers in substantial circulation in most parts of the UK.They have an average total circulation of over 12 millioncopies on weekdays and over 13 million on Sundays,attracting an overall readership of 35-40 million people eachday.
National newspapers cater for a wealth of tastes and interests Theyare often described as either 'qualities' or 'tabloids', depending ontheir format, style and content Quality newspapers - broadsheet informat - cater for readers who want detailed information on a widerange of news and current affairs Tabloid papers tend to appeal tothose who want to read shorter, entertaining (and occasionallybizarre) stories with more human interest, and they generallycontain
a
larger number of pictures. That said, the tabloids play aninfluential role in guiding public opinion.All newspapers are now printed at least partly in colour At theweekend, most produce colour supplements and separate sectionswith features on anything and everything from leisure activities,travel, books, food and wine to in depth news analysis and financialmatters This trend towards providing information on specificsubjects has even led to the launch in 1998 of two new Sundaynewspapers that deal exclusively with business
(Sunday Business)
and sport
(Sport First)
While newspapers are almost alwaysfinancially independent of any political party, they often expresspronounced views and show obvious political leanings in their editorial comments that may derive from proprietorial and other nonparty influences
In the June 2001 General Election, for example, mostnewspapers made it clear to their readerships who theythought they should vote for.
At one time, London's Fleet Street was the centre of the newspaper industry, but now all the national newspapers have moved their editorial offices and printing plants to other parts of the capital-many to Docklands, a regenerated area to the east of the citySome national newspapers, notably
The Guardian
(which hasstrong historical links with the city of Manchester), have begun tobuild up their regional presence.Unlike most of the rest of Europe, the UK press receives nosubsidies and relatively few tax and postal concessions.Newspaper profits are taxed at the standard corporation rate 10percent for the first £10,000 then 20 per cent for small companiesand 30 per cent for large (those with profits exceeding £1 5 million)The income of most newspapers and periodicals derives mainlyfrom sales to readers and from advertising - indeed, the press isthe largest advertising medium in the UK.
 
As the table shows, ownership of the national press lies in thehands of a number of large corporations, most of which are alsoinvolved in other parts of the publishing or communications sectorsSome have stakes in independent television and radio companies,although legislation is in place to safeguard against the risks arisingfrom an over-concentration of media cross-ownership. The mostprominent company, News International, controls about 35 per centof the national press (by copy sales), while Trinity Mirror ownsabout 19 per cent, Daily Mail & General Trust 19 per cent, Northern& Shell 11 per cent, Telegraph Croup 8 per cent, Guardian MediaGroup 3 per cent, Pearson 3 per cent and Independent News &Media about 1 per cent.
 
National newspapers: ownership and circulation
Title (first published)Controlled byCirculationaverage Jan-June 2001(a)
National dailiesTabloids
The Daily Mirror 
(1903)Trinity Mirror2,193,791
The Daily Star ( 
1978)Northern & Shell579,584
The Sun
(1964)News International plc3,499,882
The Daily Mail 
(1896)Daily Mail & GeneralTrust plc2,428,260
The Daily Express
(1900)Northern & Shell963,147
Qualities
The Financial Times
(1888)Pearson487,263
The Daily Telegraph
(1855)Telegraph Group Ltd1,017,797
The Guardian
(1821)Guardian Media Groupplc403,306
The Independent 
(1986)Independent News &Media225,639
The Times
(1785)News International plc715,310
National SundaysTabloids
The News of the World 
(1843)News International plc3,974,458
The Sunday Mirror 
(1963)Trinity Mirror 1,849,346
The People
(1881)Trinity Mirror1,415,555
The Mail on Sunday 
(1982)Daily Mail & GeneralTrust plc2,362,011
The Sunday Express
(1918)Northern & Shell912,996
Qualities
The Sunday Tel 
egraph(1961)Telegraph Group Ltd804,039
The Independent onSunday 
(1990)Independent News &Media250,164
The Observer 
(1791)Guardian Media Groupplc451,144
The Sunday Times
(1822)News International plc1,385,637
(a) Circulation figures are those of the Audit Bureau of Circulations (consisting of publishers advertisers and advertising agencies) and are certified average daily or weekly net sales for the period.
(For current circulaton figures click the following link:http://www.newspapersoc.org.uk/facts-figures/circulation/circulation.html)
Of the individual newspaper titles,
The Times
is perhaps the bestknown It is the oldest surviving national daily paper, dating from1785, and has enjoyed worldwide influence and authoritythroughout its history Like its competitors in the broadsheet market,it offers comprehensive coverage of important home, overseas andbusiness news, the law, politics, sport, science and the arts The
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