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:
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?
Research had shown that there was a strong desire for quality information in the print newspaper format but that consumers were increasingly time poor.
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?
By the end of 2011 i was the fastest growing daily with a circulation of 170,436 and little cannibalization of The Independent. No other national newspaper reported a significant decline, proving that i has genuinely grown the newspaper market.
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?
The Independent felt that a different type of newspaper was needed. One designed with the 21st century reader in mind. The Independent identified three potential types of readers: lapsed readers of qualities, new newspaper readers, people ‘upgrading’ from the Metro. To summarise, the market was crying out for was a short, concise quality read at only 20p Monday – Friday.
8) What were the five key principles of the i?
Phase one set out to increase awareness of the new newspaper. The independent's team visited 12,000 retail outlets in London as well as advertising on sister papers and on 60 tube stations and train stations nationwide. Phase two was designed to react to the findings of the research at the end of the initial stage of launch. The response was the creation of a new, bold above-the-line campaign covering TV, print, radio and digital, explaining exactly what the paper was and why the target audience would love it
10) List three statistics quoted in the final section 'Achievements' to demonstrate the success of the i newspaper's launch.
At the end of phase one, the title had a circulation of 60,000 and following the boost in activity during the second phase of the marketing campaign, the circulation rose to 167,944 by the end of February.
A continuous revenue growth for I was also seen meaning that Independent Print brands now take the majority share of all ad volume in the quality marketplace up from 22% December 2010 to 29% December 2011
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?
This tells us that the ideologies and values of the I newspaper are respected and that the audience support them. The I newspaper has proven to be successful in a declining market proving to be a useful and positive product.
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"?
The Daily Mail is known for being biased and right wing, switching to the I newspaper which is a newspaper which features no bias and which takes current affairs seriously. This escape from the views of the Daily Mail to the I can prove to be significant and extremely relieving for an audience.
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?
iVote (ongoing)
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?
From these campaigns, it shows that the I newspaper values it audience and help to deal with current situations which may be ignored by other newspapers such as homeless veterans and working with charities. Their values and ideologies may be viewed as a little left wing however they do not force their views onto the audience and instead let them think for themselves.
6) What did the critics say when the paper was first launched? Why did many think the paper would fail?
Critics first thought that the I would fail on launch as it was realising a sister brand from the Independent which would steal the audience and cause for more revenue problems. It would be produced by the same journalists and would fail to target it news audience. Four critics believed that the I newspaper would fail.
7) Choose three quotes from the critics' reviews and discuss whether these viewpoints remain valid today.
"Not only will i fail, it will leave The Independent in even worse shape. Like most companies launching a “sister brand” to alleviate poor sales, The Independent is about to learn that the last thing it needed was a new brand."
This critic review has proven to be wrong today. The I newspaper has proven to be extremely successful without causing cannibalism on its parent company.
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?
Most of the bestselling front pages stories are political stories which feature current affairs from around the world. This shows that the I newspaper values political stories and takes them seriously. The lack of celebrity content proves that the I newspaper values quality journalism and that its readers are educated.
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?
By time time of Frederick's death, his family ownership started to experience falls in profits. This was due to the new printing presses which required costly investments. This began the process of consolidation which led to the formation of what would become known as newspaper chains.
2) What did Johnston Press do in the 1980s and 1990s?
In 1988 Frederick Johnston III floated the company on the stock market for an initial value of £22m. But City analysts, pumped up with forecasts about super-profits available from regional newspaper advertising revenue, thought the company should be achieving even more than its £65m valuation by 1994
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?
Greenslade thinks that some newspapers are likely to stop printing as they won't be able to pay off the £220m bond.
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?
£24 million
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?
- Former head of the civil service - Hard
- X Factor cancels voting - Soft
- Business leaders call for second referendum - Hard
- Officials seize more than 1000 fake poppies from wholesaler - Soft
- Leicester City own mourned in Thai funeral - Hard
2) How is the homepage designed? Do you see similarities with the print edition?
The homepage is designed in a very simplistic way and unlike the Mail Online it doesn't bombard the readers with news stories with extremely long titles.
3) Are there examples of ‘clickbait’? What are they?
Schoolgirl banned from wearing knitted poppy because it' "too big".
4) To what extent do the stories you have found on inews.co.uk reflect the values and ideologies of the i newspaper?
The I newspaper as a lot of celebrity news which is different to the values and ideologies of the I newspaper which features more serious topics, however hard news is also found on the website.
5) What similarities and differences are there between MailOnline and the i newspaper website?
The MailOnline features a lot more celebrity and soft news compared to the I newspaper website. The layout of the MailOnline also features a lot of pictures with long news titles which attempts to clickbait the audience into reading it.
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?
No, there are still a few examples of clickbait on the website but just not as much as the MailOnline.
2) He states the website will "stick very closely to the brand values of the i". What are these?
To ensure:
- Quality content
- Pleasing design
- Balanced opinions
- Manageable layout
- Affordable price
3) How does he claim inews.co.uk will differ from online rival Buzzfeed?
It won't "chase traffic" on its website and will focus on maintaining its political independence.
4) What audience does Highfield want the website to target?
Older and more affluent audience
Affluent - rich and more wealthy
5) Why is the millennial audience less attractive?
"I think the obsession with millennials is starting to pale as they haven't got any money because they've all got student loans and because they all ad block."
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?
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?
Research had shown that there was a strong desire for quality information in the print newspaper format but that consumers were increasingly time poor.
2) How did i target readers and lapsed readers of quality newspapers?
i targeted readers and lapsed readers of quality newspapers, combining strong design with high quality content and opinion in a manageable size at the right price. It was designed to grow the market rather than cannibalise it.
3) What was the target audience and why was this attractive to advertisers?
Targeting a professional ABC1 audience, I was an attractive proposition for advertisers. The marketing mix was key to a successful launch. A clearly defined two phase launch utilised all aspects of communication to maximum effect
4) What were the statistics that proved the i newspaper was a success - and that it hadn't 'cannibalised' (taken readers from) other newspapers?
By the end of 2011 i was the fastest growing daily with a circulation of 170,436 and little cannibalization of The Independent. No other national newspaper reported a significant decline, proving that i has genuinely grown the newspaper market.
5) What was the background to the i newspaper's launch?
6) What were the objectives for the i newspaper launch?
• Reach a circulation figure of 150,000
• Avoid cannibalisation of The Independent
• Reach a combined Independent and i average circulation figure of 340,000
• Increase ad revenue growth for the business and achieve majority ad volume in the quality marketplace7) The Independent saw an opportunity in the print newspaper market. How did potential i readers view other newspapers and what product did they want?
The Independent felt that a different type of newspaper was needed. One designed with the 21st century reader in mind. The Independent identified three potential types of readers: lapsed readers of qualities, new newspaper readers, people ‘upgrading’ from the Metro. To summarise, the market was crying out for was a short, concise quality read at only 20p Monday – Friday.
8) What were the five key principles of the i?
The I was created with 5 key principles in mind:
- High quality content
- Aesthetically pleasing design
- Balanced comment/opinion
- Manageable pagination
- Affordable price
Phase one set out to increase awareness of the new newspaper. The independent's team visited 12,000 retail outlets in London as well as advertising on sister papers and on 60 tube stations and train stations nationwide. Phase two was designed to react to the findings of the research at the end of the initial stage of launch. The response was the creation of a new, bold above-the-line campaign covering TV, print, radio and digital, explaining exactly what the paper was and why the target audience would love it
10) List three statistics quoted in the final section 'Achievements' to demonstrate the success of the i newspaper's launch.
At the end of phase one, the title had a circulation of 60,000 and following the boost in activity during the second phase of the marketing campaign, the circulation rose to 167,944 by the end of February.
A continuous revenue growth for I was also seen meaning that Independent Print brands now take the majority share of all ad volume in the quality marketplace up from 22% December 2010 to 29% December 2011
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?
This tells us that the ideologies and values of the I newspaper are respected and that the audience support them. The I newspaper has proven to be successful in a declining market proving to be a useful and positive product.
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"?
The Daily Mail is known for being biased and right wing, switching to the I newspaper which is a newspaper which features no bias and which takes current affairs seriously. This escape from the views of the Daily Mail to the I can prove to be significant and extremely relieving for an audience.
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?
DAVID CAMERON, PRIME MINISTER
I love i. It’s a good read and handy size. When I’m not cycling, it’s the perfect read from Finsbury Park to Westminster by train.
JEREMY CORBYN, LABOUR LEADER
Happy Birthday to i – well and truly alive at 5! Farewell to the gloomsters who said i wouldn’t work – here’s to the power of print.
NICK CLEGG, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER 2010-2015
Congratulations to i on reaching its 5th birthday. The newspaper has been innovative, informative and entertaining in its first five years and I look forward to its continuing success in the years to come.4) Scroll down towards the bottom of the article. What are the campaigns that i have run since their launch in 2010?
iVote (ongoing)
Encourages mass voter registration and hosts political iDebates around the country – so far in Cardiff, Manchester, Edinburgh, Leeds and Bournemouth. Support for Bite the Ballot, the youth-activism movement which managed to sign up 441,696 people to vote in one week.
Back to School (ongoing)
Encourages people to return to their old state schools to give pupils inspiration and advice on careers. Partner charity Future First now has 140,000 alumni signed up.
Homeless Veterans appeal (2014)
Campaign for ex-servicemen and women who have fallen on hard times, organised with The Independent and Evening Standard. It raised £1.3m for Veterans Aid and ABF The Soldiers’ Charity.
Elephant Appeal (2013)
Working with charity Space for Giants, the campaign raised £575,000 to combat the poaching crisis that costs the lives of 100 elephants a day, killed for their ivory.
Child Soldiers (2012)
Helping former child soldiers rebuild their lives, supporting Unicef UK’s projects. The campaign raised £270,000.
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?
From these campaigns, it shows that the I newspaper values it audience and help to deal with current situations which may be ignored by other newspapers such as homeless veterans and working with charities. Their values and ideologies may be viewed as a little left wing however they do not force their views onto the audience and instead let them think for themselves.
6) What did the critics say when the paper was first launched? Why did many think the paper would fail?
Critics first thought that the I would fail on launch as it was realising a sister brand from the Independent which would steal the audience and cause for more revenue problems. It would be produced by the same journalists and would fail to target it news audience. Four critics believed that the I newspaper would fail.
7) Choose three quotes from the critics' reviews and discuss whether these viewpoints remain valid today.
"Not only will i fail, it will leave The Independent in even worse shape. Like most companies launching a “sister brand” to alleviate poor sales, The Independent is about to learn that the last thing it needed was a new brand."
This critic review has proven to be wrong today. The I newspaper has proven to be extremely successful without causing cannibalism on its parent company.
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?
Most of the bestselling front pages stories are political stories which feature current affairs from around the world. This shows that the I newspaper values political stories and takes them seriously. The lack of celebrity content proves that the I newspaper values quality journalism and that its readers are educated.
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?
By time time of Frederick's death, his family ownership started to experience falls in profits. This was due to the new printing presses which required costly investments. This began the process of consolidation which led to the formation of what would become known as newspaper chains.
2) What did Johnston Press do in the 1980s and 1990s?
In 1988 Frederick Johnston III floated the company on the stock market for an initial value of £22m. But City analysts, pumped up with forecasts about super-profits available from regional newspaper advertising revenue, thought the company should be achieving even more than its £65m valuation by 1994
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).
Blackpool Gazette, Edinburgh Evening News, Scotland on Sunday, Yorkshire Post.
4) What happened to Johnston Press in the 2000s to the present day?
Within a year of the Scotsman takeover, the huge profit margins achieved during Bowdler’s leadership, often greater than 35%, were under severe strain. Advertising, which accounted for more than 80% of Johnston Press’s revenues, was falling away rapidly.
5) How does Greenslade see the future of Johnston Press - and what might happen to the i newspaper?
Greenslade thinks that some newspapers are likely to stop printing as they won't be able to pay off the £220m bond.
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?
£24 million
2) Who did Johnston Press buy the i from?
ESI Media, which is controlled by Evgeny Lebedev.
3) What did the sale signal for the Independent newspaper?
Johnston Press has not bought the i’s existing companion website i100.co.uk, which has been retained by ESI and will be rebranded as indy100.com to stand alongside independent.co.uk.
4) What reasons were provided by Johnston Press CEO Ashley Highfield for buying the i?
“i is a highly regarded newspaper with a clear market position and a loyal readership. By joining with Johnston Press the combined circulation will be equal to 9pc of national daily circulation, making us the fourth largest player in the market.”
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?
- Former head of the civil service - Hard
- X Factor cancels voting - Soft
- Business leaders call for second referendum - Hard
- Officials seize more than 1000 fake poppies from wholesaler - Soft
- Leicester City own mourned in Thai funeral - Hard
2) How is the homepage designed? Do you see similarities with the print edition?
The homepage is designed in a very simplistic way and unlike the Mail Online it doesn't bombard the readers with news stories with extremely long titles.
3) Are there examples of ‘clickbait’? What are they?
Schoolgirl banned from wearing knitted poppy because it' "too big".
4) To what extent do the stories you have found on inews.co.uk reflect the values and ideologies of the i newspaper?
The I newspaper as a lot of celebrity news which is different to the values and ideologies of the I newspaper which features more serious topics, however hard news is also found on the website.
5) What similarities and differences are there between MailOnline and the i newspaper website?
The MailOnline features a lot more celebrity and soft news compared to the I newspaper website. The layout of the MailOnline also features a lot of pictures with long news titles which attempts to clickbait the audience into reading it.
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?
No, there are still a few examples of clickbait on the website but just not as much as the MailOnline.
2) He states the website will "stick very closely to the brand values of the i". What are these?
To ensure:
- Quality content
- Pleasing design
- Balanced opinions
- Manageable layout
- Affordable price
3) How does he claim inews.co.uk will differ from online rival Buzzfeed?
It won't "chase traffic" on its website and will focus on maintaining its political independence.
4) What audience does Highfield want the website to target?
Older and more affluent audience
Affluent - rich and more wealthy
5) Why is the millennial audience less attractive?
"I think the obsession with millennials is starting to pale as they haven't got any money because they've all got student loans and because they all ad block."
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?
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