The written press indicates, generally, the whole of the means of written information circulation, which include in particular the newspapers Quotidiens, the periodic Publications and the company doctors related to information circulation.

The word “presses” car its origin of the use of a Presse of Imprimerie on which the sheets of paper were in a hurry to be printed. To speak about “written press” is thus an impropriety, even if this expression is used from now on to differentiate the press compared to the others media which are the radio and the Télévision.

A heterogeneous environment

The written press gathers various categories of publications which can be classified according to their rate/rhythm of publication (daily newspapers, weekly magazines, monthly magazines, two-monthly etc), of their contents (specialized press and press general practitioner) or according to their nature (scientific information, entertainment, publications, etc).

Periodic daily newspapers and publications

One distinguishes the Daily press (daily ) and comparable (like the Hebdomadaire S), printed on often cheap paper, of the press Magazine (periodic Publications), more luxurious and more illustrated. The latter knew a great diversification which enables him to be more targeted, to support the development of consumer loyalty of its readers and to better resist the competition of the others Médias (of which electronic media).

Among the daily newspapers, it is advisable to distinguish:

This distinction is important, because the stakes of these types of written press are absolutely not the same ones.

For the Magazine S, several distinctions are essential. The first is that of the periodicity: their publication is weekly (each week), semi-monthly (twice per month), monthly (each month), quarterly (each quarter), etc

The magazines, whose treatment of the topicality is less pressing than for the daily newspapers, can devote more place on subjects of investigation, files on a topic or specialized chronicles. Certain titles are clearly targeted to be addressed to a particular public. It is the case of the female magazines, the magazines devoted to the Télévision, the mode, the high-speed motorboats “people” , to the Sport, the decoration, the Photographie, the Cinéma, the Chasse, the water sport, the Spectacle S, the voyage S, even to the Ordinateurs, the failures, the Sudoku, etc

Other publications are addressed more particularly to a professional public, like the legal current events , the Monitor of Work-public the , the new Factory , etc Enfin, the magazines of information, by their pulling and their influence, play a great part in the political life and economic, like Paris Match , the Express train , the Point , Nouvel Observateur , Marianne , VSD , etc

Origins and evolutions of the written press

Remote origins

The written press initially appeared in various forms: the news which was handwritten, the occasional ones, the Libelle S, the Placard S, the Almanach S. Souvent it acted of simple loose leves. This more or less clandestine press was sold in Librairie and by Colportage. As of the Rebirth and with 18th and {{XVIIIe}} centuries, part of written information was done by handwritten way, more particularly in the field of the clandestine press, but not exclusively. These workshops of copyists, whose Parisian example the most famous remainder the parish Doublet, produced newspapers that one named “Nouvelles with the hand”.

The first periodical printed in the world, a weekly magazine of four pages, titrated " Relation" , was launched to Strasbourg in December 1605 by Jean Carolus.

A slow development

The technical evolutions (the invention of the Printing works date of the years 1450) and the French revolution did not allow a real development of the press because of political measurements which were taken to block its freedom of it. It will be necessary to await the middle of the 19th century, the Industrial revolution and measurements supporting the instruction so that this development is effective.

The golden age of the written press

The written press knew a true explosion like vector of information at the end of the 19th century and at the beginning of the 20th century. It occupied a position of Monopole in fact, before the radio and the Télévision are not essential, in their turn, on the market of the Médias. The law on freedom of the press is finally promulgated on July 29th, 1881.

Current retreat of the written press

The written press tends to move back, in spite of the launching of new forms (e.g. presses free, magazines intended for very targeted segments of population) face at the same time with other media of mass, but also with the media citizens. According to the OJD, organization of reference on the diffusion of the press, the diffusion of the daily newspapers and the magazines lost 2% in 2003. Over 10 years, the reduction is of 8%. But that hides major disparities: the press magazine progresses slowly while the male press, or that related to the spectacle, competed with by the Web, loses readers.

Legal framework and fourth capacity

The right to the free expression of the thought is a basic right; in the line of this right, the right to be informed is also essential. Currently, one often evokes the universalization which is likely to make possible the installation of very powerful press groups of international dimension. Fault of being channeled, this centralization could harm freedom of the press and the Pluralisme to which the democracies are attached. At all events, it remains always very difficult to measure the real degree of independence of the press, except the totalitarian countries where this independence does not exist.

Despite everything, the press acquired a true capacity of political influence vis-a-vis the governments of the world and particularly in Occident. For example in France, the focusing of the press on certain case of insecurity during the Electoral campaign of 2002 was a considerable factor to explain the opening of the Extreme-right-hand side. In the field of justice, one can quote the businesses of Carpentras and Outreau as of the examples where the standpoint of the press influenced as much the executive power and legal that the French public opinion.

Modes of distribution in France

The editors have two means of marketing to touch their readers: the sale with the number which is ensured by a network of more than 28.000 sales outlets of proximity and the Abonnement, this last which can be conveyed by posting or bearing.

The system of the sale of the press to the number is organized by the law of April 16th, 1947 known as “Loi Bichet”, on a co-operative basis intended to ensure neutrality of it.

There exist mainly two companies of Messagerie S, known as of “level I”:

  • the Nouvelles Transport of the Parisian Press (NMPP) are the company operator for five co-operatives of transport which holds 51% of its capital, the 49% remainder being held by the company Hachette, itself operator of the NMPP (heiresses of the Transport Hatchet). The NMPP and Transport Press, which uses the same infrastructure, are the only ones to distribute Quotidien S nationals, activity which requires a particular logistics because of the emergency constraints which stick to it.
  • the Lyons Messageries of Press (MLP) specialized on the press Magazine of monthly and quarterly periodicity and also distribute some Hebdomadaire S.

These companies are used a network as agents (known as of “level II”) who feed themselves the diffusers (commercial of newspapers and kiosks, or “level III”).

The Daily regional newspaper and secondary road has its own delivery system which, essentially, feeds level III directly.

The whole of the delivery system of the press is placed under the monitoring of the Superior council of the transport of press, company doctor created by the Loi Bichet.

OJD is the organization of reference for the certification of the figures of pulling, diffusion and distribution of the French press.

Compete with, segmentation, Internet

Compared to audio-visual mediums, the written press gives often more details in information, because of its written form it especially makes it possible to the reader to remain active in his search for information thus to leave him a certain critical retreat on the events.

As for the other media, one witnesses a retreat of the written press, in particular general practitioner, compensated partially by a rise of the specialized publications allowing a segmentation compared to the centers of interests of each category of reader.

Internet, media where this specialization and multiplication of the sources are maximum, is often indicated like a large competitor of the written press since the years 2000, or like a chance for this one. It is a question of distinguishing, in fact, two aspects of Internet:

  • Internet like alternate content provider : the contents diffused by actors “purely Internet”, i.e. without well-established in the medium of the traditional Journalism, are generally regarded as not very reliable (Hoax, etc). This being, Internet (for example via the Blog S or the sites of collectives) can allow the emergence of alternative voices the traditional mediums, whose listening can be particularly useful in the event of media fad of the other sources, or of control of the written press by a government for example. The phenomenon of the Blog S raises however the question of the legitimacy and the journalistic competence of the car-declared author.
  • Internet like vector of information : the transmission of Information S journalistic represents one of the most widespread uses of Internet network, at least since the years 1990. This transmission resource, whatever the origin of information, has in particular the advantage of a world presence and of a greater capacity of resistance to the Censure S. the traditional actors of the written press use themselves Internet to publish their contents (often free) and to thus find new readers, likely then to be interested in the contents in version paper. However, in 2005, the written press still does not seem to have found effective business model to reconcile diffusion by Internet and right remuneration of the produced contents.

A relative renewal of the written press, for a few years, has escaped however that known as traditional: they are the free newspapers, going from now on well beyond the free sheets of already old classifieds of creation, while launching out this time in general information. In France, one can quote Métro and 20 minutes , like Lille more , Lyon more or Marseilles more , of free published by local dailies. This irruption makes fear with the paying daily newspapers, which lose shares of the advertizing cake there. The famous daily newspapers try to fight against this phenomenon, but their high cost does not enable them really to compete in the long term. No real questioning of the landscape of the daily newspapers (national or regional) still was born until today.

Two customers of the press

If she addresses herself in priority to the readers, the written press is also a support for the Publicité which gets a big part of its receipts to him (in France 39% in 1985 against more than 60% for the United States, Germany and Great Britain). The editors are thus held to find a right balance in their answers to waitings, sometimes contradictory, of the readers and of the Annonceur S. the written press, like the other shapes of press, can be influenced by the latter.

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