A new national newspaper with a strong nationalist identity hits the news stands this morning.
The Daily Ireland, part of Belfast's Andersonstown News stable, will compete in an already crowded marketplace with some 17 titles and aims to reach a circulation of 20,000. The established Belfast newspapers have announced redesign and investment programmes, marking an intensification in the shake-up of the local market.
Daily Ireland will be compact in design and will adopt a "national and nationalist" identity. It "will be different from anything else on the news stand and will wear its heart on its sleeve", according to Mr Mairtín Ó Muilleoir, managing director of the Andersonstown News Group. The new title will concentrate on Northern news coverage from a "green perspective".
"We will oppose violence both at home and abroad," Mr Ó Muilleoir told The Irish Times last night. Daily Ireland will target readers from the rival Irish News, which currently sells just over 50,000 copies per day, and hopes to encourage readers of the bi-weekly Andersonstown News to opt also for the new daily.
Former Irish rugby international and Ulster Unionist member Trevor Ringland contributes to today's edition. Contributors will also include Damien Kiberd and Patricia McKenna. Some 40 employees are involved, including one from each of the 12 counties specifically targeted by the newspaper.