Evening Standard

The London Evening Standard, formerly The Standard (1827–1904), is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format.

For the New Zealand newspaper formerly known as the Evening Standard, see Manawatu Standard.

Evening Standard
Evening Standard cover (19 March 2020)
TypeRegional free daily newspaper
FormatTabloid
Owner(s)
EditorDylan Jones
Founded21 May 1827 (1827-05-21)
Political alignmentLiberal Democrats (as of 2019)[2]
LanguageEnglish
HeadquartersAlphabeta, 14–18 Finsbury Square, London
Circulation302,602 (as of July 2023)[3]
ISSN2041-4404
Websitewww.standard.co.uk
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Headlines of the Evening Standard on the day of London bombing on 7 July 2005, at Waterloo station
Unloading the Evening Standard at Chancery Lane Station, Holborn, November 2014

In October 2009, after being purchased by Russian businessman Alexander Lebedev, the paper ended a 180-year history of paid circulation and became a free newspaper, doubling its circulation as part of a change in its business plan.[4] Dylan Jones has served as editor since June 2023.[5]

History

From 1827 to 2009

The newspaper was founded by barrister Stanley Lees Giffard on 21 May 1827 as The Standard.[6] The early owner of the paper was Charles Baldwin. Under the ownership of James Johnstone, The Standard became a morning paper from 29 June 1857. The Evening Standard was published from 11 June 1859. The Standard gained eminence for its detailed foreign news, notably its reporting of events of the American Civil War (1861–1865), the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, and the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, all contributing to a rise in circulation.[7] By the end of the 19th century, the evening edition eclipsed its morning counterpart.

Both The Standard and the Evening Standard were acquired by C. Arthur Pearson in 1904.[8] In May 1915, Edward Hulton purchased the Evening Standard from Davison Dalziel.[9] Dalziel had purchased both papers in 1910,[10] and closed The Standard, the morning paper, in 1916.[8] Hulton introduced the gossip column Londoner's Diary, originally billed as "a column written by gentlemen for gentlemen".

In 1923, Lord Beaverbrook, owner of the Daily Express, bought Hulton's newspapers, although he sold them shortly thereafter to the Daily Mail's owner Lord Rothermere, with the exception of the Standard. It became a staunchly Conservative paper, harshly attacking Labour in 1945 in a high-profile campaign that backfired. In the 1960s, the paper was upstaged by The Evening News, which sold over 1 million copies nightly. During the decade, the paper also began to publish the comic strip Modesty Blaise, which bolstered its sales throughout the 1970s. The Evening Standard ceased publishing on Saturdays on 30 November 1974, when it still produced six editions daily.[11]

In 1980, Express Newspapers merged the Standard with Associated Newspapers' Evening News in a Joint Operating Agreement. The new paper was known as the New Standard until 1985, when Associated Newspapers bought out the remaining stake, turning it into The Standard. In 1987 the Evening News was briefly revived to compete with Robert Maxwell's London Daily News, but was reabsorbed into The Standard later that year, after the collapse of Maxwell's paper. In 1988 the Evening Standard included the by-line "Incorporating the 'Evening News'", which remained until the paper's sale in 2009.

Lebedev takeover

On 21 January 2009, the Russian businessman and former KGB agent Alexander Lebedev and his son Evgeny Lebedev, owners of The Independent, agreed to acquire control of the Evening Standard for £1 for 64 per cent ownership.[1][12] A few years earlier, 12 per cent of the paper had been sold to Justin Shaw and Geordie Greig. Associated Newspapers retained the remaining 24 per cent.

In November 2009, it was announced that the London Evening Standard would drop its morning "News Extra" edition from 4 January 2010. From then on, the first edition was the "West End Final", available from 2 pm.[13] One edition of 600,000 copies would be printed starting at 12:30 pm, ending 5.30 am starts for journalists and the previous deadline of 7 am for the first edition. Twenty people were expected to lose their jobs as a result.[13]

There were often considerable changes between editions in the front-page lead and the following news pages, including the Londoner's Diary, though features and reviews stayed the same.[14] In January 2010, circulation was increased to 900,000.[15]

May 2009 relaunch
London Evening Standard dispensers at Sainsbury's supermarket, 2017

In May 2009, the newspaper launched a series of poster ads, each of which prominently featured the word "Sorry" in the paper's then-masthead font. These ads offered various apologies for past editorial approaches, such as "Sorry for losing touch".[16] None of the posters mentioned the Evening Standard by name, although they featured the paper's Eros logo. Ex-editor Veronica Wadley criticised the "Pravda-style" campaign saying it humiliated the paper's staff and insulted its readers.[17] The campaign was designed by McCann Erickson. Also in May 2009 the paper relaunched as the London Evening Standard with a new layout and masthead, marking the occasion by giving away 650,000 free copies on the day,[18] and refreshed its sports coverage.[19]

October 2009: freesheet

After a long history of paid circulation, on 12 October 2009 the Standard became a free newspaper,[4][20] with free circulation of 700,000, limited to central London. In February 2010, a paid-for circulation version became available in suburban areas of London for 20p (although many places sell it for 50p).[21][22] The newspaper won the Media Brand of the Year and the Grand Prix Gold awards at the Media Week awards in October 2010. The judges said, "[the Standard has] quite simply ... stunned the market. Not just for the act of going free, but because editorial quality has been maintained, circulation has almost trebled and advertisers have responded favourably. Here is a media brand restored to health."[23] The Standard also won the daily newspaper of the year award at the London Press Club Press Awards in May 2011.[24]

May 2010: mobile application

The Evening Standard launched a mobile app with US app developer Handmark in May 2010.[25] The range of apps was updated in 2015.[26]

March 2018: redesign

In March 2018, editor George Osborne initiated a redesign of the paper, which featured a dropping of the 'London' from the paper's title in a signal of the paper's ambition to have greater national and international influence.[27] The paper also introduced more colourful "sign-posting" for different sections such as news, comment, and business, as it was noted by Osborne that it had not been "easy" to find them inside the paper previously.[27] The masthead was also redesigned with a new font, and emojis were added to the paper's five-day weather forecast.[28]

May 2018: financial sponsorship

In May 2018, James Cusick of openDemocracy alleged the newspaper had been providing favourable news coverage to companies including Uber and Google in exchange for financial sponsorship.[29][30]

2019 and 2020 job cuts

In June 2019, the Evening Standard announced job cuts.[31] By the end of 2019, the company reported a pre-tax loss of £13.6 million. In August 2020, the paper announced a further 115 job cuts in order to save the company.[32]

2022

The Evening Standard endorsed Liz Truss in the July–September 2022 Conservative Party leadership election.[33]

Editorial style

From July 2020 to October 2021, the newspaper's editor was Emily Sheffield, sister of Samantha Cameron, who took over from the former Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne, who has now taken over the role of editor-in-chief. As editor he had replaced Sarah Sands who, in turn, had replaced Geordie Greig following his departure to The Mail on Sunday in March 2012.[34] Veronica Wadley was the newspaper's editor between 2002 and 2009.[35] Max Hastings was editor from 1996 until he retired in 2002.

The Evening Standard, although a regional newspaper, does cover national and international news, though with an emphasis on London-centred news (especially in its features pages), covering building developments, property prices, traffic schemes, politics, the congestion charge and, in the Londoner's Diary page, gossip on the social scene. It also occasionally runs campaigns on local issues that national newspapers do not cover in detail.

It has a tradition of providing arts coverage. Its best known former art critic, Brian Sewell, was known for his acerbic view of conceptual art, Britart and the Turner Prize[36] and his views attracted controversy and criticism in the art world.[37] He has been described as "Britain's most famous and controversial art critic".[38]

During the 2008 London mayoral election the newspaper – and particularly the correspondent Andrew Gilligan – published articles in support of the Conservative candidate, Boris Johnson, including frequent front-page headlines condemning Ken Livingstone. This included the headline "Suicide bomb backer runs Ken's campaign".[39]

On 5 May 2010, the newspaper stated in an editorial that, having supported Labour under Tony Blair, the newspaper would be supporting David Cameron and the Conservatives in the general election, saying that "the Conservatives are ready for power: they look like a government in waiting".[40] On 5 May 2015, an editorial stated that the newspaper would again be supporting David Cameron and the Conservatives in the 2015 General Election, saying that the Conservatives have "shown themselves to be good for London". The newspaper did however also claim "there may be good tactical reasons to vote Liberal Democrat".[41]

The Media Reform Coalition (MRC) and Goldsmiths University of London argued that in the 2016 elections, the Evening Standard favoured the Conservative Party, according to MRC chair Justin Schlosberg. There were almost twice as many positive headlines about the Conservative candidate, Zac Goldsmith, as for his Labour rival, Sadiq Khan, with stories exhibiting the strongest bias against Khan also being the most prominent.[42]

During the 2019 Conservative leadership election, the Evening Standard endorsed Boris Johnson.[43] During the 2020 Labour leadership election, the Evening Standard endorsed Keir Starmer to become Labour leader and consequently Leader of the Opposition.[44]

Freesheet and supplements

On 14 December 2004, Associated Newspapers launched a Monday–Friday freesheet edition of the Evening Standard called Standard Lite to help boost circulation. This had 48 pages, compared with about 80 in the main paper, which also had a supplement on most days.[45]

In August 2006, the freesheet was relaunched as London Lite. It was designed to be especially attractive to younger female readers and featured a wide range of lifestyle articles, but less news and business news than the main paper. It was initially available only between 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. at Evening Standard vendors and in the central area, but later became available in the evening from its street distributors.[46] With the sale of the Evening Standard, but not the London Lite, to Alexander Lebedev on 21 January 2009, the ownership links between the Standard and the Lite were broken.[47]

On Fridays, the newspaper includes a free glossy lifestyle magazine, ES (launched as the Evening Standard Magazine in 2009[48]), and the circulation was increased to 350,000 in September 2014. This has moved from more general articles to concentrate on glamour, with features on the rich, powerful and famous. On Wednesdays, selected areas offer a free copy of the Homes & Property supplement, edited by Janice Morley, which includes London property listings as well as articles from lifestyle journalists including Barbara Chandler, Katie Law, and Alison Cork.

An entertainment guide supplement Metro Life (previously called Hot Tickets) was launched in September 2002. This was a what's-on guide with listings of cinemas and theatres in and around London and was given away on Thursdays. It was discontinued on 1 September 2005.

  • The Evening Standard has a fleet of delivery vans painted in a distinctive orange and white livery.
    The Evening Standard has a fleet of delivery vans painted in a distinctive orange and white livery.
  • Delivering the Evening Standard to Euston Station, September 2022
    Delivering the Evening Standard to Euston Station, September 2022

Website

The newspaper's This Is London website carries some of the stories from the Evening Standard and promotions, reviews and competitions. It also includes a number of blogs by Evening Standard writers, such as restaurant critic Charles Campion, theatre critic Kieron Quirke and music critic David Smyth. A separate website contains images of each page of the print edition (two versions) and supplements.[49]

Editors

References
  1. Brook, Stephen; Sweney, Mark (21 January 2009). "Alexander Lebedev's Evening Standard takeover: Dacre announces sale to staff". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 January 2009.
  2. "George Osborne's Evening Standard backs Lib Dems for EU elections". The Guardian. 22 May 2019. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  3. "Evening Standard". Audit Bureau of Circulations. 15 August 2023. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  4. "London's 'Evening Standard' To Become Free Paper". Editor & Publisher. 2 October 2009. Archived from the original on 4 October 2009.
  5. Turvill, William (30 May 2023). "Former GQ chief Dylan Jones named editor of the Evening Standard". Press Gazette. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
  6. Brook, Stephen (14 January 2009). "A history of the London Evening Standard: seeing off rivals for 181 years". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
  7. Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition; Cambridge University Press, 1911, Vol. XIX, Mun to Oddfellows; Article on Newspapers, pp. 544–581.
  8. Griffiths, Dennis (1992). The Encyclopedia of the British Press, 1422–1992 (illustrated ed.). London & Basingstoke: Macmillan. p. 234. ISBN 978-0-333-52984-3.
  9. Griffiths, Encyclopedia of the British Press, p. 324
  10. Griffiths, Encyclopedia of the British Press, p.188
  11. "Where are they now, those Saturday People?". 47shoelane. 1 November 2015.
  12. "Ex-KGB Spy Buys UK Paper for £1". BBC News. 21 January 2009. Retrieved 21 January 2009.
  13. Sweney, Mark (26 November 2009). "London Evening Standard drops noon edition and cuts jobs". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  14. "ESI Media (Independent, Standard)". MagForum. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
  15. Reynolds, John (10 July 2013). "London Evening Standard owner plots circulation increase to 900,000 copies". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
  16. Roy Greenslade (4 May 2009). "Evening Standard Launches Ad Campaign To Say Sorry to Londoners". Greenslade Blog. Retrieved 4 August 2012 – via The Guardian.
  17. "Ex-Editor Wadley Criticises Standard's 'Pravda-Style' Relaunch". Brand Republic. 11 May 2009.
  18. Stephen Brook (11 May 2009). "London Evening Standard Relaunch – Who's Sorry Now?". Organ Grinder Blog. Retrieved 4 August 2012 – via The Guardian.
  19. Stephen Brook (27 May 2009). "London Evening Standard Revamps Sport Pages". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  20. "Evening Standard To Be Free Paper". BBC News. 2 October 2009.
  21. Steve Busfield (15 February 2010). "How Much for a 'Free' London Evening Standard? 50p in Some Shops". Greenslade Blog. Retrieved 4 August 2012 – via The Guardian.
  22. "Evening Standard No Longer Free In Some Parts". Londonist. 15 February 2010.
  23. "'Evening Standard' Wins Top Awards". The Independent. ESI Media. 30 October 2010. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  24. "Evening Standard Wins Newspaper of the Year Award". Press Gazette. 15 May 2011. Archived from the original on 12 January 2012. Retrieved 15 May 2011.
  25. Jason Deans (24 April 2010). "London Evening Standard launches smartphone app". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  26. Jessie Sampson (15 January 2015). "Evening Standard launches new app range". Newsworks. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  27. Ian Burrell (12 March 2018). "George Osborne on his Evening Standard revamp and dropping London from its masthead". The Drum. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  28. Freddy Mayhew (12 March 2018). "Evening Standard redesign: Weather 'poo' emojis, no more 'London' in masthead and pink business pages". PressGazette.co.uk. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  29. James Cusick (30 May 2018). "George Osborne's London Evening Standard sells its editorial independence to Uber, Google and others – for £3 million". openDemocracy.
  30. Richard Sambrook (1 June 2018). "Fake news week: three stories that reveal the extreme pressure journalism is now under". The Conversation.
  31. "Evening Standard theatre critics axed as part of 'necessary cost-cutting'". Press Gazette. London. 4 June 2019.
  32. Barker, Alex (7 August 2020). "Evening Standard to cut a third of jobs as Covid-19 bites". Financial Times. London. Archived from the original on 10 December 2022. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  33. "Evening Standard backs Liz Truss". Evening Standard. Retrieved 11 October 2022 – via PressReader.
  34. Dan Sabbagh (30 March 2012). "Sarah Sands Is New Editor of London Evening Standard". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  35. Veronica Wadley (11 May 2009). "Ex-Evening Standard Editor Veronica Wadley's Verdict on Paper's New Regime". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  36. "Tate's collections 'wretched', says Brian Sewell". The Daily Telegraph. 30 November 2009.
  37. Jonathan Jones (20 September 2015). "Brian Sewell's pungent views got people arguing – that's what matters". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 November 2018.
  38. Rachel Cooke (13 November 2005). "We pee on things and call it art". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 November 2008.
  39. Michael White (16 April 2008). "As Polls Move Towards Ken, Evening Standard Seems Rattled". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 April 2009.
  40. "David Cameron: The Prime Minister That London Now Needs". London Evening Standard. 5 May 2010. Archived from the original on 7 May 2010.
  41. "Vote for London: The Standard urges readers to think of what's best for the capital... and support the Tories in the election". London Evening Standard. 5 May 2015.
  42. Martinson, Jane (27 April 2016). "London Evening Standard is 'Tory mouthpiece' – research". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
  43. "Evening Standard comment: We back Boris as the PM to turn Britain around". Evening Standard. 20 June 2019. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
  44. "Comment: Sir Keir Starmer can offer the opposition Britain needs". Evening Standard. 1 April 2020. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  45. Claire Cozens (10 December 2004). "Media buyers voice fears over 'downmarket' free Standard". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
  46. Stephen Brook (25 August 2006). "Some Lite relief". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
  47. Stephen Brook (5 October 2009). "Associated Newspapers backs Evening Standard decision to go free". The Guardian.
  48. "UK national newspapers". MagForum. Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  49. "This is London". Evening Standard.
  50. "London Evening Standard". The British Newspaper Archive. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  51. Crapster, Basil L. (December 1975). "Thomas Hamber, 1828–1902 Tory Journalist". Victorian Periodicals Newsletter. The Johns Hopkins University Press on behalf of the Research Society for Victorian. 8 (4): 116, 118. JSTOR 20085087.
  52. Chisholm, Hugh (1911). "Newspapers". In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 560.
  53. Dennis Griffiths (27 July 2016). Plant Here The Standard. Springer. pp. 151, 164, 193. ISBN 978-1-349-12461-9.
  54. "Evening Standard: Charlotte Ross". InPublishing. 21 July 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
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