Sunday, April 19, 2009

Morning papers

Despite the spread of the Internet and a seemingly infinite variety of television channels, the print media still continues to be a major - if not the major - source of news for the Chennaiites. The Registrar of Newspapers for India, on its website, indicates that there are 5,634 titles being published from Chennai, from dailies to annuals. That data is for the year 2005-06, but considering that in that year, 2074 new titles were registered (all over India) and only four ceased publication, it is reasonable to assume that there are close to 6000 titles being published from the city currently. Sure, that count includes titles like 'Zoo Zoo Zinzu', which I have never ever seen (or even heard of, before today), so you can still go ahead with that plan you had to launch an eveninger next week.

Yet, pause. Look through those numbers again and you'll find that there are 69 dailies in English alone. 386 in Tamil. 492 in all, including Gujarati and Marathi titles. Of course, the newspaper reader in Chennai is spoiled for choice, but obviously so many will not be available at your local newsstand. When you go there, you'll have - let's say, about 6 English dailies (and maybe another 4 business dailies in English), 8 in Tamil, maybe 4 in Telugu and a couple each in Kannada, Malayalam and Hindi. By that reckoning, the range in this shop seems to be par for the course.

I need to find out more about that Zoo Zoo Zinzu - both the daily and the weekly that are supposedly being published from Chennai!



5 comments:

Lowell said...

It is sad, I think, that so many papers in this country are in trouble. Our daily paper has changed dramatically that it is no longer worth reading!

LVISS said...

There are quite a lot of free newspapers in all localities which deal with local news.

Shantaram said...

@ Jacob: I can imagine - read an article a few days ago about a hundred-year old newspaper shutting down; it must have seemed like the end of civilization for the town!

@ Lviss: Checked - almost all of them are registered with the RNI

chorinchath said...

I happened to hear a comment by a Newspaper celebrity that they could survive the onslaught of networks because TV news would serve as the appetizer whereas newspaper would be like a full-course meal!

Shantaram said...

@ Narayanan: These would certainly make one completely sated!