Starting a newspaper

[Pirate Utopian]

i want to start a newspaper called "De weekelijkse revolutie" or in english the weekly revolution, i will try to release it on mondays so i can use the weekends to make it and have time after school to distribute it.

but i need help, how do i distribute a newspaper? do just go to mall and hand out free copies? and for how long do i do that?
what software andother computer stuff do i need to make a newspaper?
and what about ads?, i've tried internet but i mostly get advice to call some american company and i dont even live in america.

thanks for any help given

[Fawkes]

Leave 'em all over the place, particularly colleges or any leftist gathering places. Head shops are also a good place to leave 'em.

[Martin Blank]

Originally posted by Big [email protected] 26, 2006 07:33 pm
but i need help, how do i distribute a newspaper? do just go to mall and hand out free copies? and for how long do i do that?
what software andother computer stuff do i need to make a newspaper?
and what about ads?, i've tried internet but i mostly get advice to call some american company and i dont even live in america.

thanks for any help given
Before you start producing a newspaper, you need to make some concrete decisions about it. You have already decided a couple of them: name and frequency. After this, you need to decide size (amount of pages), dimensions of page (A4, B4, A2, etc.) and, most importantly, orientation.

In terms of orientation, you have to decide who is your target audience. Are you appealing to workers? Youth? People in general? The Left? How you answer this question will define the best methods of distribution.

The main question to ask about distribution is: Where does my target audience gather in large numbers? After that, it is just a matter of working out details of how to do the distributions.

For software, I recommend the following:

Adobe InDesign
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Acrobat
Adobe Type Manager
Adobe fonts

InDesign is a desktop-publishing program, the successor to PageMaker. Photoshop is for cleaning up and improving quality of photos. Acrobat is for making PDF files of your publication (for distribution and printing). Type Manager and the fonts give you a wide range of options for the look and feel of your publication. All of these applications can be downloaded through BitTorrent.

There are websites out there that talk about techniques and methods for designing a newspaper that is appealing to the eye (both in terms of look and reading ability). But the best thing to do is to look through current publications (daily newspapers, magazines, etc.) for ideas.

As for ads, I would suggest not bothering with them for now. Ads only have a valuable when you've already built a small base of support and are ready to expand in new directions.

Miles

[RNK]

I'd think carefully on what content you want to include in this paper. Simply wasting paper re-printing the overused slogans like "[insert country] out of [insert another country] NOW!" every time there's some tiny iota of information to be said about it is simply going to add to the already heavy pile of useless newspapers, article mags and e-zines that litter the leftist movement. I mean, come on, can't we come up with something better to do that post "US OUT OF IRAQ NOW!" articles every single week?

[An archist]

You could just leave some of them at a spot in your school where almost everyone passes and also drop some in local bars, youthclubs, ...
As for content, I agree with Ernest, try to find new materials, maybe do some indepth articles about stuff (like RFID chips), but if you're targeting non-leftwing people, also include basics offcourse.

[Enragé]

dont you think we have enough newspapers already?

i mean

De Socialist, the NCPN's one, i bet the belgian PvdA has one too, as well as whatever trotskyist split there is over there.

[Forward Union]

Originally posted by Freedom for [email protected] 27, 2006 02:01 am
particularly colleges or any leftist gathering places.
These are absolutely the last places to put them. Leftist hangouts are literally packed with alternative newspapers and leaflets.

I've been mildly involved in this sort of project before, and my advice would be to write this newspaper in a way that will appeal to normal working people. Not other communists. Communists like us will have heard what your paper will have said already.

Write about local issues that people are worried about in your local town. The difference being, that you put something of a class analysis in it. So if there is an increase in unemployment around your town/city, blame the state and the business owners for specific actions, not immigrants. And be precise, mention actual closures or figures that people will have heard of.

Dont use to much activist language. You might as well not even make it if it's going to be an activist bulletin. There are plenty about.

as for distribution... I recommend going to newsagents, small shops, and street vendors, and asking them to put a stack of them on their counter or whatever. Or get paperboys to insert your newspaper into the ones they distribute already, for a few euros.

[fashbash]

I think Love Underground has made some crucial points
Write about local issues
Dont use to much activist language but i terms of distribution, be imaginative! Leave copies on the bus, in libraries, park benches, jeez, open up cereal packets in Tesco and slip em inside. Just leave them lying around so that people will just pick one up and say "Hey whats this?" And maybe also have an e-mail adress for feedback. You may get enough positive response to start producing professionally, who knows?

[firsty]

www.scribus.net is a great desktop application for producing print documents like this. it has a good selection of custom features, like columns, folds, etc. it's free and open source. there is no need for professional applications like the adobe suite unless you've got mad cash and a need for high-level features.

you won't sell ad space until you have a proven audience. forget that for now. if anything, you might be able to find sponsors willing to front some cash for copies and distribution in exchange for a featured ad.

if you have a writing staff, you can enlist them in distributing (or making) copies. you might also consider making some of the content available on a dedicated website.

make sure the content, whatever it is, is copy-edited for accuracy and quality. in other words, make sure facts are correct and that things are spelled correctly and that it looks good. a decent publication can be stonewalled for most readers because of easily preventable mistakes.

this is an area which interests me greatly - getting content to real-world distribution. i'll be glad to help if you have any more questions.

[Y Chwyldro Comiwnyddol Cymraeg]

I would go for a monthly mag personaly. Cos u just repeay urself and run out news. I would also include ideological articles as wel as news

[Pirate Utopian]

thanks for the advice peoples.
the paper will not nessarcly be Communist, but it will be leftist.
i dont really have any colleges nearby, by the way, although nearby is a mall, a libary, a subwaystation and my old primary school, so i can appeal to young ones maybe :)

anyway, does anyone have some alternative newswebsite links?, thanks if so

[Forward Union]

Originally posted by Big [email protected] 27, 2006 09:06 pm
does anyone have some alternative newswebsite links?, thanks if so

Indymedia (http://www.indymedia.org/en/index.shtml)

Freedom Press (http://freedom.libcom.org.uk/) (anarchist newspaper)

Morning Star (http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/index2.php/ex/examples) (linked to the british communist part)

[Enragé]

http://www.indymedia.nl
http://www.devrije.nl