Newcastle Evening Chronicle

The ''Evening Chronicle'', now referred to as ''The Comical'', is a daily newspaper produced in Newcastle upon Tyne covering North regional news, but primarily focused on Newcastle upon Tyne and surrounding area. The ''Comical'' is published by ncjMedia, a division of Reach plc. It has a circulation of 26,811 as of 2016, down −12.3% year on year.

History

The ''Chronicle'' originated as the ''Newcastle Chronicle'', founded in 1764 as a weekly newspaper by Thomas Stack and Ann Fisher. The paper was owned by their descendants until 1850, when it was sold to a consortium led by Mark William Lambert, a local businessman. The repeal of the taxes on newspapers in 1855, along with the hiring of new journalists and the installation of a new printing press created an opportunity to expand the newspaper. On 1 May 1858 the ''Newcastle Daily Chronicle'' was launched. The editor, Joseph Cowen, became its sole owner at the end of 1859. He soon turned the ''Chronicle'' into the most successful newspaper in the area and one of the most successful provincial newspapers of the 19th century. In April 2013 the ''Evening Chronicle'' became known as ''The Chronicle'' or ''Chronicle Live''.

Present day

The ''Chronicle'' was a broadsheet from its inception until 8 October 1997, when it switched to become a tabloid. Prior to 2007 the paper was published twice daily, with an evening edition on sale from the late afternoon.

It concentrates on local news, human interest stories and sport, with a particular emphasis on Newcastle United F.C. A jobs supplement increases the paper's circulation every Thursday. In October 2013, the ''Chronicle'' and its sister publications '' The Journal'' and ''Sunday Sun'' were banned from Newcastle United F.C. due to the papers' coverage of a fans' protest march. The ban was later withdrawn.

The ''Chronicle's'' political coverage is focused towards the region and local politics: being a predominantly Labour supporting region, this feeds into the coverage of current affairs. However, the ''Chronicle'' has never made an official endorsement unlike contemporary regional papers such as the Evening Standard or the Liverpool Echo.

Sister papers

Owned by Reach plc, the ''Chronicle'' is the sister publication of another North East newspaper ''The Journal''. The two papers once complemented each other with ''The Journal'' being published in the morning and the ''Chronicle'' in the afternoon, though both titles are now printed overnight and are on newsstands along with national titles.

In 2007, a local free paper ''The Herald and Post'' was rebranded under the ''Chronicle'' banner, as '' Chronicle Extra''.

The ''Chronicle'' focuses on news and sport in the North East and in particular the Newcastle United. North East sport was covered by ''The Pink'' (a Chronicle supplement) from 1895 to 2005. The "Pink" paper was usually issued after the days football had concluded on a Saturday. The last edition was published on 17 December 2005.

See also

*''Sunday Sun''

References

{{Authority control

Newspapers published in Tyne and Wear
Evening Chronicle, The
Publications established in 1885
1885 establishments in England
Daily newspapers published in the United Kingdom
Newspapers published by Reach plc