Living in Edinburgh I guess it would be unfair of me not to show my support to the local newspaper. The Edinburgh Evening news is printed and distributed within the Lothian area. Covering a wide variety of subjects from home and abroad, with this paper you're always guaranteed to find something to read about.
For the past 11 years now Edinburgh
evening news has been printed in the standard tabloid size, meaning it is easier to fit in your shopping bag and more lower and middle class people are likely to buy it. Before 1995 the paper was printed in a broad sheet format and I strongly believe that the management team chose to change the layout because of there sales.
The Edinburgh evening news is printed in the lovely offices near to Holyrood palace, which yes is just opposite the new Scottish parliament building in Edinburgh.
You will pay 35 pence each day for the paper which I think is really good considering what you will find inside the paper. You can buy the paper from many outlets including most newsagents, garages, supermarkets and the main office at Holyrood. If you're familiar with the city of Edinburgh then you will know that you still have the street vendors that have there little stalls selling the Edinburgh evening news. Yes they all still shout "Evening news" & "get your news here".
There are two different editions of the evening news printed everyday. You get the early edition known as the City at about 11.45am. Now this edition has all the latest news and reviews. Later in the day at about 3.00pm you will get the city final which is the most up to date news of that day. Sometimes there will not be a big difference between the two editions, lately I have just noticed a few changes in the later edition and mainly that was the pictures. I do always try and get the copy of the City final as I always want to read the most up to date news available.
**Front Page**
Like all the papers printed on a daily basis the front page needs to be something that makes the reader wants to read more. As I write this review the font page has the main headline "we'll shame young thugs" along with sub headers that include "Robert burns and his lovers in Edinburgh". Down the right hand side of the front page you will also see that they provide you with a menu to what is in the inside of the paper. If you're getting something for free I.e. Job pages, Home pages, Movie guide etc the editors all have this advertised along the top of the paper like a banner.
*My thoughts~ I feel that the front page is often too busy, what I mean with that is there are too many different stories on the front page. Ok it's good to grab people's attention but I don't understand why the editors have to have sometimes up to 4 stories started on the main page.
**Back Page**
As you can imagine living in Edinburgh you are always going to have a
sports headline that includes either Hibs or Hearts
football teams. Usually one headline will dominate the back page and then you will have anything up to five or six pages of
all sports.
Pictures within the sports section are of the finest quality and I have to say I feel that they always capture the right frame for the article. Most of the stories that they carry on the back pages are controversial and will often start people talking about the evening news and what they have reported. I guess that is what they want the general public to do.
*My thoughts~ Sports pages are written well and I love the fact that they capitalise on the fact that it's an Edinburgh paper. They always have stories about local football teams, sports stars etc. However they do still cover other major sports developments around the UK and across the world.
**Inside Pages**
With about 40 or so pages I am sure that there is something for every reader, me personally I read all the pages with exception to the sports pages as I dislike sport. I know sad or what. There is such a variety of subjects within the main pages and of course you also have all the local adverts advertising business. I thought it would be useful if I done a quick and simple breakdown of certain pages within the paper to give you all an idea of what to expect.**Traffic Watch** ~ usually on the inside page, I find this a total waste as it tells you about the days traffic problems. Now I usually get the paper at about 18.00hrs and by that time I am home, so I think this space could be used a little better.
**Weather & Tide Times~ I really think that the Edinburgh news has done well given this topic a serious thought. Well I mean the tide times are such a valuable thing to have especially if you want to walk to one of the islands. This section also covers the sun and moon times which can be helpful too. Worldwide weather is also printed here too which I do check everyday as I think I might win the lottery and need to book a last minute deal.
**Around the world news** ~ Well that's what they call it and it consist of half a page of news which is usually a day behind. Not all that good when you want to read about news!!!
**Around Town** ~ Well worth reading as you will find out what is happening usually in your local area. This section is usually found on page 26/27
**Quick News** ~ throughout the entire paper you will see "quick news" what this means is that it's a very brief news story but something the editors feel we should read or know. I have to say I usually do read them all as they are very interesting.
There are bigger sections that I feel are more valuable to the Evening news rather than the sections above. Even though I read the above I certainly ensure that I read the below with great detail.
**Get It Sorted** ~ A relatively new section to the Edinburgh evening news here but certainly something that has went down like a treat. I read this section with great interest as it covers the entire are of Edinburgh. So what is this all about I hear you say! Well basically what this section does is get things fixed (eventually). You know what it's like when you have a faulty street light that has been like that for months or a pot hole on the pavement that is dangerous.
Well living in Edinburgh it can take some time to get these sorted. Well with the help of the biggest publication in Edinburgh you are guaranteed to get it sorted. They publish the details of the complaint and will continue to do this until it's sorted.
**Your View**~ Love it! This is the part when we the readers get to voice our opinion on something that the news has written about. Sometimes very petty in my view of course that's just my view. Here you have the regulars that will write in all the bloody time and moan about certain articles!!! I think if your moaning all the time then save your money and don't buy. On the other hand you have genuine readers who like to have there say on subjects that usually include parking, buses, traffic and employment in Edinburgh. These pages are possibly the most read section in the news, but please before you all rush to write your letters please keep in mind that they publish your address and name????
**On this day**~ News from the past on this day, something that I love to read about is old news. Not like
yesterday's news but news from 200 years ago and more. This section always amazes me as I often think did that really happen all those years ago? How do they know? Really? Certainly something that I would suggest you have a look at……..
**Happy Birthday**~ I am still surprised that this section is printed everyday as I remember reading this section when I was 10 or so and oh my god that was a while a go. Well this section gives you the names of 10 famous people whose birthday it is today and to make it worse they publish there age. Shame on them. I do like the idea of this as we always check with a listed celebrity we share our birthday with.
Now that's sections that you will find in the news on a daily basis and of course please believe me that there is a lot pf new articles after all you are reading the evening news paper. Now there are several of sections that you would expect in your local newspaper and they include a comprehensive television listing that covers all council channels (
BBC1, BB2,
ITV, CH4 & CH5) but what it does also cover is the most popular channels on sky including the likes of
sky one,
sky movies, UK channels and many more. Just so it's clear this paper is not printed on a Sunday so you can expect to get your weekend television supplement on a Friday which covers Saturday and Sunday. Full radio listing will also be found on a daily basis within the
TV listings sections.
Family announcements are another large section of the paper that I truly believe half the readers check first. Well here you can read all about marriages that have happened or just about to happen join in the celebration of a birth and even learn of any deaths. I know you think how sad is that, but honestly this is one of the first things my wee gran reads first, I have always asked what and she replies by saying in case I know someone.
Competitions and freebies~ something that we all like? Well even buying the paper you will be able to get the chance to entry local competitions now usually there is a small prize of a meal at a local restaurant or a marks and sparks voucher.
Now the competitions usually consist of a rather easy question and then to enter you have to either text ar calla hotline number. Freebies are actually within the paper its self you usually have to go to collect them at certain shops, for example they give away free sparklers at bonfire night.
Depending on what night you get the paper you are likely to find different things within it. I mean the supplements will be different.
Monday~ looking for a new house?? Look no further as today is the day that you will be provided with a super selection of house for sale or rent within Edinburgh
Tuesday ~ a financial theme here today is the day when you get free financial advice.
Wednesday ~ no set thing on this day when it comes to supplements, this week you have a parking guide. Next week who knows?
Thursday~ a super pull out section for anyone that is looking for working with the Lothian and borders. This section is full of current vacancies.
Friday ~ Weekend guide to films and
TelevisionSaturday ~ sports day is today, you will find a supplement with all the fixtures for all the
games. Each and every day you will have the opportunity to look over the classified section within the paper, now this section is usually full of useful info to on local goings on. If you're looking to buy something or looking for a particular service then it's always handy to have a wee look here. You will also find that people put a lot of animals "free to good homes" in this section. Evening news does charge for this facility, prices payable are dependant on many factors. If you want to post an ad I suggest you contact them direct for more info.
Finals Thoughts~
I have to say that I really do enjoy reading my local paper on a daily basis; I feel that the quality of the writing is better than what you can expect in other daily papers. The fact that I know if something has happened in my City then I will be able to read the full events in the paper. Even though I don't always agree to what they write I can certainly see why they do write it. I will continue to buy the news as I strongly believe that they are with there readers when it comes to local issues… I love looking over the superb pictures that accompany all the news articles. Finally I think what makes this paper so successful it is behind all the local business when it comes to advertising. I can guarantee that you will see so many businesses that you recognise from walking through town. A local paper produced locally and produced for the local
More info~
Editor ~ John McLellan
News ~ Euan McGrory ~ 0131 620 8734
Sport ~ Graham Lindsay ~ 0131 620 8722
Features~ Gina Davidson~ 0131 620 8683
Business~ Scott Reid ~ 0131 620 8750
Head Office 108 Holyrood Road, Edinburgh, Eh8 8AS 0131 620 8620
Opening Times Mon-Fri 0830am- 1750pm - Sun and Sun Closed
Weekly summary of this paper is available in audio please
telephone 0131 661 2850 or visit www.lothiansound.org.uk
Website for the news paper is ~ http://edinburghnews.scotsman.com/
Thanks for reading
Marcellep © Ciaouk February 2006
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