More newspapers, less advert: How are the new entrants coping?

In the run-up to the 2011 general elections, Nigerian media industry witnessed a huge increase in the number of titles.  The titles include Peoples Daily, Peoples Power, National Daily, Blueprint, The Road, Nigerian Pilot etc.  Their online counterparts include political Nigeria, huhuonline, Nigeria News Desk etc. They all claim to offer unique products or project […]

In the run-up to the 2011 general elections, Nigerian media industry witnessed a huge increase in the number of titles.  The titles include Peoples Daily, Peoples Power, National Daily, Blueprint, The Road, Nigerian Pilot etc.  Their online counterparts include political Nigeria, huhuonline, Nigeria News Desk etc.

They all claim to offer unique products or project the public good in their own ways. But newspapers are known to survive principally on adverts. Adverts came in torrents during elections. Once the politicking ended, the placement of advert on politics is reduced arguably to a trickle.

Given this dearth of adverts, how are the new entrants coping?

For the Peoples Daily, which targets the North, the main problem arises for the fact that the people are mainly radio-listening audience, with a very slim middle class. But the paper’s CEO, Alhaji Ali M. Ali, who believes the lack of adverts results from the two aforementioned problem, said the challenges posed by the radio and small middle class are not the  only ones his newspaper faces. He said, “First, the fierce competition from newspapers from Lagos, which have been in existence longer than you have, and then the other existing papers in the north, are also serious factors. That is why you have to think and think fast, evolve ways of making ends meet, one of which is the special project and aggressive marketing.”

Prodded to explain further, Alhaji Ali added: “You see,  I just gave you a general approach. You don’t wait for the adverts to come to you. You go for them. And, in any case, you are a competitor. I am not going to tell you about my special projects. But then special project, anywhere, is special project.  Basically, the general idea of the special project is: you don’t wait for the advert to come to you, you go for them. You go chase them out.

The Blueprint is not finding it easy, too. The chairman of the company,  Malam Muhammad Idris, believes newspapers will remain for some time despite the threat of the online medium. “It is not easy, but we have to survive. We are relying largely on the contacts that we have built over the years to help us to leverage on the market. We are also relying on the quality stories that we are giving out. That will endear readers to us as a publication. That in turn will attract adverts.”

Breaking even with circulation?

Alhaji Ali believes “no newspaper actually thrives on copy sales, no newspaper, because production costs are very horrendous, very, very high. So, for a paper that you produce at an average cost of N120 per copy, and then sell for N150 per copy, you can imagine the pressure. Don’t forget, you are even giving concession to the vendors. So, you are not going to break even.”

The Blueprint’s CEO says: “It is too early for us as a company… You will recall that it is not long that the Blueprint debuted. So, it is too early to talk about breaking even. But we are happy with what we have seen. Readers have accepted us and we are being encouraged. And we believe we will get there.”

Despite the daunting challenges, the new entrants are upbeat. For them, the sky is wide enough for the birds to fly. Malam Idris’s position is: “I believe there is still space in Nigeria for newspapers to thrive. It depends on the kind of stories that you put out there. If you give readers what they want to read, certainly they will continue to read you. We know there are challenges, especially from online publications now, but, you know, the newspaper will remain for some time to come. I believe so.”

According to the Peoples Daily’s CEO: “The market is not yet saturated, at least in this part of the country. It can accommodate more.  There are a thousand and one newspapers in Lagos. But we only get to know about the big ones. There are smaller newspapers that circulate. There are community papers that circulate within a certain environment. There are evening papers, you know, you don’t get to hear of them. But they are doing well. They are thriving. They are flourishing. They attract adverts. And the publishers are literarily smiling to the bank.”

However, Mr. George Okoro, a veteran journalist, doesn’t share the optimism of the new entrants. “Most of them will die like others who have come out,” he declared. “Many came out in the 1980s. Where are they now? Many came out in the 1990s. Where are they now?”

Asked if there were/are no papers that rose from obscurity on the Fleet Street where he was trained, replied: “no no no. “Investment in newspapering is for multi-millionaires, people who have made it and have surplus money to throw around. They can pay for news. They can pay for people to work and get news.”

The veteran who has taught journalism at various times took a swipe at those he described as hungry publishers. “You enter into publishing and the first month you want profit from adverts. No gestation period when you will test the waters, testing readership to see how your target audience is responding so that you can make editorial adjustment if necessary. That is something that takes two years to do.  It can only be done by a millionaire who is well-established. Not somebody who wants profit, but cannot bring money to invest and also have money for libel. ”

Some of the publishers who spoke with Sunday Trust, say their driving force is more than money.

According to Alhaji Ali, “first and foremost, we are concerned about the people. We are not pretending. We have a turf, you know, which we hold very dear, which we will go to any length to protect. But we are driven by the interest of the Nigerian people. And that is why we are called Peoples Daily. We are about the people. Anytime we will choose the people than those who rule over the people.”

The courage that keeps Blueprint afloat is the audience’s reaction, according to Malam Idris. He says: “it is the readers.  People are reading us. It is interesting when you drive around the city or any other city, you see people, vendors displaying Blueprint. It gives you that courage. You see people holding it, reading it. Occasionally, you receive phone calls telling you about the stories that you have published. Some will like what you have done. Some will not like what you have done. But that gives you the courage. On the whole, we believe that Nigerians are happy with what they have seen. We have given them a fresh angle to journalism and that is what Nigerians want. If you give them that, you will continue to thrive. And money comes second. Once you have satisfied the public and you believe that you have made your own contribution, the money issue is secondary.”