The i: Case Study

The I Cast Study

1) What are the front page stories on the 21 September edition of the i?

-The Salzburg Disaster - relating to Theresa May's ongoing attempts to secure a deal with other EU leaders that will be of benefit to the UK
-Interviews with M.I.A, Emma Stone and information on new albums

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
Interestingly, the layout of this page makes it a lot easier to navigate and consume information compared to traditional newspapers.
The news stories are concise and are summarised to allow the "time-poor" commuter to gain a wide range of info in a short space of time

Pages 5

The subject of this article is reflective of the socially aware and conscious nature of the audience

Demonstrates the concerns and the viewpoints of the audience - environmentalists etc

Younger audience is more likely to campaign against injustices etc

Page 6/7

Highlights the importance of politics; being aware of what's happening around us and how it could affect us

Page 9

Highlights the dangers of overusing the drug, but also shows the positive impact that ecstasy could have in small doses 

Page 15

Niche bands and musicians - creating opportunities for the audience to open themselves up to new music

Page 16

Diversity of opinions, not a biased or one-sided account of stories.

3) Media language: Write an analysis of the construction of the i front page: Page design, font, text, images, conventions, hard news/soft news, news values etc.

The hard news is the headline - focus on politics and the ongoing news stories

Headline - bold, heavy font establishes the importance of the story

Copy has been regulated to the inside of the newspaper - cover relies on images and colour to relay the story.

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?

The common belief that Theresa May is struggling with her role of leading the UK through this difficult time of change, they portray Theresa May as "furious" and a more courageous, strong-willed female.

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 showed that consumers still wanted quality news information; however, their lack of time prevented them from doing so.

2) How did i target readers and lapsed readers of quality newspapers?
They combined their strong design with high quality content to ensure that people could digest the information easily without hassle. They also formatted their newspaper into a smaller size, meaning that commuters could manage the newspaper during their journey easier.

3) What was the target audience and why was this attractive to advertisers?

The target audience for the i newspaper was a professional ABC1 audience, as this demographic often proves to be the most time-poor. It was attractive to advertisers because it meant that advertisers would be able to target their products to the right audience.

4) What were the statistics that proved the i newspaper was a success - and that it hadn't 'cannibalised' (taken readers from) other newspapers?
The circulation of the i newspaper was 170,436 by the end of 2011, and there were no signs of cannibalisation of the Independent newspaper. Also, no other newspapers reported a significant decline after the introduction of the i newspaper.

5) What was the background to the i newspaper's launch?

The newspaper market was in decline - the UK market declined 21% in just 2 years (between 2007 and 2009), and the competition for readers was becoming increasingly intense.

6) What were the objectives for the i newspaper launch?

Reach a circulation of 150,000

Avoid cannibalization of The Independent

Reach a combined Independent and i circulation of 340,00

Increase the ad revenue growth for the business

Achieve majority ad volume in the marketplace

8) What were the five key principles of the i?

1. High quality content
2. Aesthetically pleasing design
3. Balanced comments/opinions
4. Manageable pagination
5. Affordable price

9) How was the newspaper launched?

Explained exactly what the paper was and why the target audience would love it. They spelt out the benefits of the newspaper, and allowed different people to express why they loved the paper.

Read this collection of quotes and messages in the Independent to celebrate the i newspaper's fifth birthday. Answer the following questions:

1) Read Nigel Farage'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?
Tells us that the newspaper successfully balances the demand for hard news (like politics and current affairs) with soft news like entertainment based news/interviews. It also highlights how well the newspaper has flourished in a marketplace which is in an apparent decline. 

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"?
Barbara Williams made this comment that The i Newspaper "returned their blood pressure to normal" to imply that the Independent's approach to reporting and their ideologies are more sensitive and informative compared to other newspapers.

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?

"The newspaper has been innovative, informative and entertaining in its first five years..." 

Suggests that the audience are able to experience both surveillance (by learning about various topics), as well as diversion as they would enjoy the entertainment-related articles etc.

"Farewell to the gloomsters who said i wouldn't work - here's to the power of print." - Jeremy Corbyn

Suggests that the readers enjoy the versatility of the i newspaper, and that although it was considered a difficult endeavour, the i has scucessfully continued to grow. 

"The paper’s focus on the NHS financial crisis, staffing shortage and the ongoing A&E crisis has been relentless and the paper is to be commended for that." - Nicola Sturgeon

Highlights the newspaper's sense of responsibility and the duty that it has to raise awareness of any crises/issues that could affect society. Covering topics like the NHS financial crisis etc makes people more aware of what is happening around them.

4) Scroll down towards the bottom of the article. What are the campaigns that i have run since their launch in 2010?

Back to School - encouraging people to return to their old state schools and provide students with inspiration and advice on careers

Homeless Veterans appeal - supports ex-servicemen and women who are struggling

Elephant Appeal - working with Space for Giants to combat the poaching of elephants

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?
They are very community focused and are progressive. This is reflective of the liberal, optimistic nature of the newspaper.

6) What did the critics say when the paper was first launched? Why did many think the paper would fail?
Many people believed that the newspaper would fail as the newspaper industry as a whole was suffering a major decline. Readerships and circulation was decreasing for the majority of print publications, so it was expected that the i would suffer decline rather than growth.

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." 

This criticism is invalid as it does not take the audience into consideration. The i aims to allow time-poor individuals to gain an insight into the world around them, in a short space of time, and the i actually does just that. 

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? 
From the bestselling front page stories, we learn that whilst the targeted demographic is fairly young, readers of the i tend to enjoy hard news stories - relating to the economy and politics. 

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?
The company began in the mid-19th century when the newspapers were the main form of mass communication., TheFarlkirk Herald was soon acquired by A. Johnston.

2) What did Johnston Press do in the 1980s and 1990s?
F. Johnston the Third joined the business in 1962, and in 1988, he floated the company on the stock market - achieving a value of £22m. It was then assumed that the company would continue to grow.

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).

Brighton & Hove Independent, Yorkshire Post Newspapers, Lancashire Evening Post Ltd

4) What happened to Johnston Press in the 2000s to the present day?
Johnston Press bought newspapers for large sums of money, e.g. the Scotsman for £160m. This spending led to the Johnston Press being under a huge financial strain. The company found themselves in more and more debt.

5) How does Greenslade see the future of Johnston Press - and what might happen to the i newspaper?
He suggests that Johnston Press will eventually split up, with the subsidiaries and different newspapers being bought by other rival companies. Some newspapers may even be cancelled all together. 

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?
They bought the i for £24m.

2) Who did Johnston Press buy the i from?

ESI Media - controlled by Evgeny Lebedev.

3) What did the sale signal for the Independent newspaper?

It signalled that there would be some redundancies, as fewer people would be needed to edit the content for the single print newspaper. 

4) What reasons were provided by Johnston Press CEO Ashley Highfield for buying the i?
Ashley Highfield explained that the purchase of the i newspaper would be a transformational acquisition, as it would be a great step forward in adding to the print industry as a whole.

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.
"A complete kick in the teeth for myself and other JP workers facing redundancy."

This is a criticism of how the company seemingly acts without considering the trade-off and costs that the workers at JP/the i newspaper will suffer from, and how it could impact the lives of them and their families almost indefinitely.

"Don’t see much evidence of digital experience in any other JP titles. ... so that’s all good!"

This quote criticises Ashley Highfield's decision to purchase the i and attempt to recover from the severe debts that Johnston Press have accumulated.