NRC Handelsblad

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The February 2, 2006 front page of
NRC Handelsblad
Type Daily newspaper
Format 57 cm x 41.5 cm
Owner PCM Uitgevers
Editor Birgit Donker
Founded 1970 by merger
Language Dutch
Price € 1.40 Monday–Friday
€ 2.50 Saturday
Headquarters Marten Meesweg 35
Rotterdam, Netherlands
Circulation 244,099 Monday–Friday[1]
270,189 Saturday[1]
ISSN 0002-5259
Website: www.nrc.nl

NRC Handelsblad, often abbreviated to NRC, is a daily evening newspaper published in the Netherlands by PCM Uitgevers. The broadsheet format newspaper had its first edition on October 1, 1970, after the merger of the newpapers Nieuwe Rotterdamsche Courant and Algemeen Handelsblad. In 2006 a tabloid format newspaper nrc.next was launched. In this year the circulation of NRC Handelsblad was 244,099 from Monday to Friday and 270,189 on Saturday.

Contents

[edit] History

NRC Handelsblad started at October 1, 1970, after a merger of the Amsterdam newspaper Algemeen Handelsblad (founded in 1828 by J.W. van den Biesen) and the Rotterdam-based Nieuwe Rotterdamsche Courant (founded in 1844 by Henricus Nijgh). The paper's motto is Lux et Libertas – Light (referring to the Age of Enlightenment) and Freedom.

The circulation of NRC was 242.195 in 2004 (against 265,000 in 2002). The total circulation of Dutch newspapers was 4.013.547 at the end of 2004.

As from February 2006 NRC Handelsblad started a smaller, morning newspaper, nrc.next, intended to attract higher educated readers who don't read a newspaper on an everyday basis. This group is an ever growing part of the population in most western countries.

The newspaper stated on 6 September 2006 that executive editor Folkert Jensma would retire from his function.[2] He was succeeded on December 12, 2006, by Birgit Donker.[3]

In 2008 it started to offer a subscription in combination with a e-paper reading device (iLiad) for a lump sum.[4]

[edit] Profile

NRC Handelsblad (usually referred to as 'de NRC' or, less often, 'het Handelsblad') markets to the higher income, higher educated, populace. Its main competitors in the Netherlands are De Volkskrant, which caters to a younger audience, and Het Financieele Dagblad, The Netherlands' only businesspaper. NRC Handelsblad concentrates on politics, economy, opinion, science, art and literature.

However, like newspapers in many other countries, NRC Handelsblad suffers from the declining number of people willing to read a newspaper every day. NRC Handelsblad has sought new ways to attach its readers more firmly to the newspaper, by offering extensive electronic services (like making the newspaper-archive available on the internet) and by opening a 'webshop' which sells books, tickets for lectures a DVD-line of European cinema and other things that fit in the 'brand'. In recent years several Dutch newspapers have started to switch to the tabloid model, which was previously unknown in the Netherlands, but still has a 'low quality' image that is quite the opposite of what NRC stand for.

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b PCM Media Profiel & Bereik. www.pcmmedia.nl. PCM Media. Retrieved on 2007-06-07.
  2. ^ NRC Handelsblad dated 6 September 2006 front page.
  3. ^ NRC Handelsblad 12 December 2006 page 21 Tegenwicht aan Trivialisering: Birgit Donker benoemd tot hoofdredacteur van NRC Handelsblad
    "Birgit Donker is de nieuwe hoofdredacteur van NRC Handelsblad, nrc.next en nrc.nl. De raad van bestuur van PCM heeft haar vandaag benoemd.
    Rotterdam, 12 Dec. Birgit Donker (41) is de opvolger van Folkert Jensma als hoofdredacteur van NRC Handelsblad."
  4. ^ http://www.ebookreaders.nl/nrc_heeft_e-paper_primeur?language_code=en

[edit] External links

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