Fiktiv UK - JPIMedia - The Independent

The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition; The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily newspapers. The daily edition was named National Newspaper of the Year at the 2004 British Press Awards.

The newspaper was controlled by Independent News & Media from 1997 until it was sold to Johnston Press in 2010. The Independent came under the control of JPIMedia a day after Johnston Press filed for administration on 16 November 2018.

Originally a broadsheet newspaper, the newspaper has been published in a tabloid or "compact" format since 2003. The Independent is regarded as coming from the centre-left, on culture and politics, but tends to take a more pro-market stance on economic issues. It has not affiliated itself with any political party and features a range of views given on its editorial and comment pages. The paper describes itself as "free from party political bias, free from proprietorial influence"—a banner it carries on the front page of its daily edition.

The Independent was first published on 7 October 1986 as a broadsheet. It was produced by Newspaper Publishing plc and created by Andreas Whittam Smith, Stephen Glover and Matthew Symonds. All three partners were former journalists at The Daily Telegraph who had left the paper towards the end of Lord Hartwell's ownership. Marcus Sieff was the first chairman of Newspaper Publishing and Whittam Smith took control of the paper.

The paper was created at a time of a fundamental change in British newspaper publishing. Rupert Murdoch was challenging long-accepted practices of the print unions and ultimately defeating them in the Wapping dispute. Consequently, production costs could be reduced and, it was said at the time, create openings for more competition. As a result of controversy around Murdoch's move to Wapping, the plant was effectively having to function under siege from sacked print workers picketing outside. The new paper attracted staff from the two Murdoch broadsheets who had chosen not to move to his company's new headquarters. Launched with the advertising slogan "It is. Are you?", and challenging The Guardian for centre-left readers, and The Times as a newspaper of record, it reached a circulation of over 400,000 by 1989.

Competing in a moribund market, The Independent sparked a general freshening of newspaper design as well as, within a few years, a price war in the market sector. The market was tight and when The Independent launched The Independent on Sunday in 1990, sales were less than anticipated, partly due to the launch of the Sunday Correspondent four months before the IoS, although this direct rival closed at the end of November 1990. Some aspects of production merged with the main paper, although still with a largely distinct editorial staff.

In the 1990s, The Independent was faced with price cutting by the Murdoch titles, and started an advertising campaign accusing The Times and The Daily Telegraph of reflecting the views of their proprietors, Rupert Murdoch and Conrad Black. It featured spoofs of their mastheads with the words 'THE RUPERT MURDOCH', 'The Conrad Black', and below, 'THE INDEPENDENT'.

Newspaper Publishing had financial problems. A number of other media companies were interested in the paper. Tony O'Reilly's media group and Mirror Group Newspapers had bought substantial stakes by mid-1994. In March 1995 Newspaper Publishing was restructured with a rights issue, splitting the shareholding into Independent News & Media (43%), MGN (43%), and Prisa (publisher of El País, 12%).

In April 1996 there was another refinancing and in March 1998 O'Reilly bought the other 54% of the company for £30 million, and assumed the company's debt. Brendan Hopkins headed Independent News while Andrew Marr was appointed editor of The Independent and Rosie Boycott of The Independent on Sunday. Marr introduced a dramatic if short-lived redesign which won critical favour but was a commercial failure, partly as a result of a limited promotional budget. Marr admitted his changes had been a mistake in his book My Trade.

Boycott left in April 1998 to join the Daily Express and Marr in May 1998, later becoming the BBC's political editor. Simon Kelner was appointed as the editor. By this time the circulation had fallen below 200,000. Independent News spent heavily to improve circulation, and the paper had several redesigns. While circulation improved, it did not approach the level which had been achieved in 1989 or restore profitability. Job cuts and financial controls reduced the morale of journalists, and compromised the product. Ivan Fallon, on the board since 1995 and formerly a key figure at The Sunday Times, replaced Hopkins as head of Independent News & Media in July 2002. By mid-2004, the newspaper was losing £5 million a year. A gradual improvement meant that by 2006, circulation was at a nine-year high.

On 25 March 2010, Independent News & Media sold the newspaper to regional publisher Johnston Press, which already owned the Yorkshire Post and The Scotsman.

In November 2018, ownership of The Independent alongside the other assets of Johnston Press were transferred in a pre-packaged administration deal to JPIMedia, a company set up by the bondholders of Johnston Press, after several attempts to restructure the debt or sell the business were unsuccessful.

The Independent was originally published as a broadsheet in a series of celebrated designs. The final version was designed by Carroll, Dempsey and Thirkell following a commission by Nicholas Garland who, along with Alexander Chancellor, was unhappy with designs produced by Raymond Hawkey and Michael McGuiness. At the time on seeing the dummies Chancellor said "I thought we were joining a serious paper." The first edition was designed and implemented by Michael Crozier who was Executive Editor, Design and Picture, from pre-launch in 1986 to 1994.

From September 2003 it was produced in both broadsheet and tabloid versions, with the same content in each. The tabloid edition was termed "compact" to distance itself from the more sensationalist reporting style usually associated with "tabloid" newspapers in the UK. After launching in the London area and subsequently North West England, the smaller format appeared gradually throughout the UK. Soon afterwards Rupert Murdoch's Times followed suit and introduced its own tabloid version. Prior to these changes, The Independent had a daily circulation of around 217,500, the lowest of any major national British daily, climbing to claim a 15% rise by March 2004 (to 250,000). Throughout much of 2006, circulation stagnated at a quarter of a million. On 14 May 2004, The Independent produced its last weekday broadsheet, having stopped producing a Saturday broadsheet edition in January. The Independent on Sunday published its last simultaneous broadsheet on 9 October 2005, and has since followed a compact design.

On 12 April 2005, The Independent redesigned its layout to a more European feel, similar to France's Libération. The redesign was carried out by a Barcelona-based design studio. The weekday second section was subsumed within the main paper, double-page feature articles became common in the main news pages, and there were revisions to front and back covers. A new second section, Extra, was introduced on 25 April 2006. It is similar to The Guardian's G2 and The Times' Times2, containing features, reportage and games, including sudoku. In June 2007 The Independent on Sunday consolidated its content into a news section which included sports and business, and a magazine focusing on life and culture. On 23 September 2008 the main newspaper became full-colour.

Three weeks after the acquisition of the paper by Johnston Press in 2010, the paper was relaunched with another redesign on 20 April. The new format featured smaller headlines. On 11 October 2011, The Independent unveiled yet another new look, featuring a red, sans-serif masthead. In November 2013 this was again changed for a vertical masthead in black. It also had new custom fonts and the whole newspaper was overhauled.

Monday - Friday:
The Independent Monday to Friday has an emphasis on providing unbiased news with thought-provoking opinion and comment through high quality, authoritative journalism.

The first news section additionally covers business, comment and sport. We publish a sports supplement on Mondays, which includes reports and analysis of the weekend's action.

The 24-page feature lead supplement Extra is a creative and exciting additional read to the main news pages. It includes great journalism from leading writers as well as interviews and reviews of current arts and culture.

The Independent also publishes the following dedicated sections:

Media Weekly (Monday)
On the forefront of the industry, Media Weekly focuses on broadcasting, publishing, advertising, marketing and PR. Regular features include news, comments from the media world and interviews with leading figures in the industry.

Motoring (Tuesday)
In-depth features by our motoring experts with weekly comment & news from celebrity writers create a motoring supplement that is insightful and informative. The weekly road tests of the best new cars and reader opinions in ‘The Verdict’ makes this section a must read for an unbiased and informed view.

Property (Wednesday)
With the aim to inspire, entertain and inform this property supplement covers an extensive range from the UK’s most stunning houses to consumer news stories on buying and selling. Our must have overseas property supplement runs monthly with a closer look into the international market.

Education & Careers (Thursday)
The Independent’s unique weekly supplement that explores the relationship between learning and earning. With comment, analysis and advice from industry leaders as well as recent graduates, Education & Careers attracts a wide audience of readers in the education community. It focuses on all levels, from primary to higher and further education.

The regular Postgraduate special and column offers the perfect platform for advertisers wishing to reach students, parents, teachers and adults looking to expand their skill base. In addition, advertisers have the opportunity to book into our Pan-European network into prestigious papers such as ‘Le Monde’, ‘Corriere Della Sera’, ‘El Pais’ and ‘The Irish Times’.

Arts & Books Review (Friday)
This creative and cutting-edge supplement runs with regular features for film, music, theatre and books. It provides readers with a weekly dose of entertainment, which forms an integral part of their lifestyle in a digestible format.

Saturday:
Consisting of six sections, The Independent carries forward its weekday values into the weekend, satisfying the need for greater coverage of lifestyle and leisure issues in a weekend newspaper.

Along with the news section, which like the Monday-Friday Independent contains comment, letters and obituaries, the paper also includes a 12 page Saturday Sports section featuring the Brian Viner interview plus former England bowler Angus Fraser, The Independent's cricket correspondent.

The Independent Magazine:
The Independent Magazine complements the strong Independent Saturday package. It is targeted unashamedly at an intelligent readership, with a variety of features each week that include celebrity interviews, current affairs, art or photographic exhibitions. These are all combined with a mix of games and crosswords, weekly contributors and regular lifestyle columns.

Regulars range from columns by Will Self and Victoria Coren Mitchell to fashion, gardening and recipes. ‘How do I look’, ‘Heroes and villains’ and the Gadgets page round off a package which inspires all weekend. The Independent Magazine also produces dedicated ‘Special Issues’ each year, with the whole issue given over to one theme. These include Food & Drink, Travel, Fashion and Christmas Gifts.

The Independent Traveller:
Our Saturday travel pull-out is a comprehensive guide packed with the latest travel advice and hottest destinations. Broad thinking in its editorial and featuring both well-known and off-beat places to go, it offers both in-depth and insightful knowledge. With features such as ‘A Complete Guide to’ and ’48 hours’, readers are given a detailed and thorough view highlighting where to stay, what to do, what to listen to and what to see.

Your Money:
Our personal finance supplement, covering a wide range of topics from mortgages, loans and credit cards to savings accounts, pensions and investments. Written with The Independent reader in mind, it enables readers to get the best possible deal for their money.

The Information:
‘The essential guide to going out and staying in’ – The Information is targeted at young, urban professionals who want to make the most of their leisure time. Every Saturday this 68 page entertainment and listings supplement features ’50 of the best’, ranging from the 50 best places to eat al fresco, to the 50 best bathrooms essentials and the 50 best home computers. As well as publishing full 7 day tv, satellite and radio listings which reflect its national distribution, The Information also contains reviews and details of what’s showing in the arts, books, film, music, clubs, comedy, and much more.

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The Independent on Sunday is the Sunday sister newspaper of The Independent.

Re-launched as a compact in June 2007, the Independent on Sunday contains everything you need on a Sunday and nothing you don’t. It retains all the quality journalism and in-depth analysis our readers are used to but in a much more compact format. All news, reviews, travel and sport is contained in the main section with the pull out Business on Sunday and the New Review, our groundbreaking Sunday magazine packed full of fashion, food and features.

The New Review:
The New Review is a part of the ‘World’s best designed newspaper’. It has always been renowned for its strong reportage, news features and cultured outlook. Over time The Review has developed into a more rounded product, reflecting the changing needs of Sunday readers, whilst still holding true to its core values…black and white reportage photography and current affairs stories sit happily alongside features on Jean Paul Gaultier or the Bollywood invasion. It combined the following sections, making it a more compact and user-friendly read:
- Revue features the latest on celebrities, parties and trends
- Arts&Books usually contains a leading media feature as well as literature reviews
- Living features fashion, beauty, food, motoring and gardening
- 7-day TV guide

Business on Sunday:
The Sunday business pull out contains all current business and media news plus all you need to know about the world of finance. Top news reporting and analysis for example on endowments, the housing market, or pensions, caters for the needs of our readers. It also contains regular case studies to offer more detailed information.

Travel on Sunday:
Our Sunday travel supplement gives targeted themed editions focussing on jet-set travel, cities, countries, regions or types of holidaying. Written with the free-thinking traveller in mind, The Compact Traveller presents options around a topic with the aim to inform and inspire.

Talk of the Town:
"Talk of the Town" is a 48 page words-based glossy magazine distributed in the ITV London region, targeting a unique audience who are selective in their media consumption. It celebrates fine writing and fine writers with a strong cultural and arts bias. This high quality magazine is aimed at the top end of the London market with articles from quality writers ranging from Charlie Parsons and Chris Weitz.

Weekly articles include a combination of columns, features, interviews and polemics and it also includes a critical guide to film, theatre, galleries and museums.