Schwan

I have this idea that’s bouncing around in my head and I just can’t let go of it. I thought I’d post it here and see if anyone had any experiences with anything similar, and if anyone has any tips or experiences regarding the issue.

I live in a large city, with around 2-3 million inhabitants. What my city doesn’t have is an evening newspaper. What it does have is a lot of traffic jams in, you guessed it, the evening. Recently the large dailies started selling their papers right on the traffic lights, to drivers on their way to and from work. It’s a bit pointless, I think, to buy a paper in the evening, especially if it’s, in fact, yesterdays paper (it’s printed overnight).

I have a tad of journalistic experience, and these days I’m doing copyright work for various people, though I’m not earning anything from it. Since I’m spending most of the day doing nothing, as I have classes every two weeks over the weekend, I thought that I could use all the free time to start an evening paper. This would be a totally home-grown enterprise, with me doing all the work. I’ve calculated the time, and I think it’s doable. I think I have the skill to pull it off.

Evening paper is something large – I think a more appropriate term would be newsletter. I can write the articles about the latest world news, I can do the very basic DTP on my home computer, I can print the newsletter, and make copies, and I can do it all just in time for the evening traffic. I’ve made some very basic calculations, and the whole idea starts to make sense if I sell 100 or more copies. The traffic lasts from around 4.30 p.m. till 7 p.m.

There are multiple points around the city I could sell the paper – in traffic, that is. I figure that if I manage to sell a hundred copies in that estimates time in a single spot, then the idea is worth pursuing on daily basis. It’s still an idea, though. I’m not really that hot on the idea of actually selling the paper, and I have no idea if anyone’s buy one.

On the other hand, nobody’s doing it (though this might be for a reason, too). I see a niche this big, and I just can’t stop thinking about it. I understand that the press market for each country, or even city, is unique, but I wonder if there’s anyone on tfp who has any experience with anything similar, or has any opinions or ideas to share with me.

gonadman

No journalistic experience here, but I have an opinion

Sounds like a great idea but a huge time committment. To give the articles enough meat you would be committing yourself to hours of typing and researching every day. You have to love the work or it could get old real fast. Although once it started becoming more popular, you always could hire writers and add columns from others.

I imagine for the first couple of weeks you would need to give away most if not all your work to get people familiar with the newsletter before they plunk down cash for it. You might also get good publicity from local media-Tv and radio if you issue press releases. Also it would make sense to keep it more or less politically neutral, at least from the start to avoid alienating a segment of the population. I also think it needs a certain "edginess" to it, not found in the mass media- I think that would be appealing for its difference.

Well, just some thoughts, good luck- send me a copy if you decide to do it!

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For me there is only the traveling on paths that have heart, on any path that may have heart. There I travel, and the only worthwhile challenge is to traverse its full length. And there I travel, looking, looking, ...breathlessly.
-Carlos Castaneda

runtuff

Don't know the reason, but all the evening edition papers have all died out long ago. It would have to be a speciality paper. Maybe its human nature to read the paper in the morning.

gar1976

Newscasts on TV and radio killed this one off years ago. Good luck, though.

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Blistex, in regards to crappy games -

They made pong look like a story driven RPG with a dynamic campaign.

TheBrit

What you would have to do would be a new roundup, with loads of categories.
Technology, medicine, sport, politics, local news, etc.
What about local businesses advertising?

maleficent

Printing would be expensive I'd imagine, even as small as tabloid... (I doubt anyone would buy 12 8 1/2 x 11" sheets stapled together. Advertising could make up those costs if you could sell enough papers.

Do you have public transportation in town? That'd be your biggest target, the commuters going home on the bus and the train, if they're driving? They can't read til they get home... and the days of the person getting home from work, kicking off their shoes putting on their slippers,and sitting in the easy chair with the paper and a cocktail are gone... though it wouldn't be bad to bring back those days

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