''nrc•next'' () was a

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

daily

newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sport ...

published in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

Mediahuis Mediahuis is a newspaper & magazine publishing, distribution, printing, TV, radio and online media company founded in 2014 with assets in Belgium, the Netherlands, Ireland, Luxembourg and Germany. Mediahuis publishes daily newspaper titles in Belg ...

. The first edition was released on 14 March 2006. It was stopped in March 2021. ''nrc•next'' was a morning edition tabloid, and its primary target group are young higher educated people.

Formula

The newspaper aimed at young, well-educated ( HBO or

university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which ...

) readers in the 25-34 age group, most of whom did not read a newspaper, or read the free tabloids ''

Metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: Geography * Metro (city), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urban ...

'' and ''

Spits ''Spits'' (; en, Peak/Rush Hour; stylized as ''Sp!ts'') was a tabloid format newspaper freely distributed in trains, trams and buses in the Netherlands from 1999 to 2014. Its competitor was ''Metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: ...

''. Secondarily, ''nrc•next'' aimed at the 20-39 age group. The newspaper was intended for "the new generation of interested media-users who use news and information in a different way", according to NRC executive editor Folkert Jensma. The news was delivered in concise format, because it was assumed that the readers had already picked up the basics from other sources. For the same reason, some news items was not covered at all. Background, analysis and opinion were thus the main focus of the paper.

Relations with parent paper

''nrc•next'' cooperated closely with the evening newspaper ''

NRC Handelsblad ''NRC'', previously called ''NRC Handelsblad'' (), is a daily morning newspaper published in the Netherlands by NRC Media. It is generally accepted as a newspaper of record in the Netherlands. History ''NRC Handelsblad'' was first published on ...

'' and had its own independent

editors Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, or ...

. About 60% of the content of ''nrc•next'' was taken from the NRC. The paper used a team of thirty people to reformulate its contents to a format more suitable for a younger audience. Furthermore the ''nrc•next'' was supplemented with graphics, columns, comics and puzzles.

Publishing

The paper was originally only published on Monday to Friday. It was marketed as a competitor for freesheets or, as the publishers claimed at the launch, it is "a newspaper for people who don't read paid newspapers." Its cost was one euro and ten cents, less than other paid newspapers. Regular readers could take a weekday subscription, or they could opt for a subscription for of ''nrc•next'' on weekdays and the ''NRC Weekend'' (Saturday edition for ''NRC Handelsblad'' and ''nrc•next'') Saturday. After 12 October 2013 the paper was also published on Saturday. Subscribers could choose between ''NRC Weekend'' or the Saturday edition of ''nrc•next''. Since 2021 both editions are branded NRC Handelsblad, with the evening edition disappearing.

Belgian parallel

A comparable initiative was launched in

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to cultu ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

: '' De Standaard Espresso'': a lighter version of the newspaper of record ''

De Standaard ''De Standaard'' (meaning ''The Standard'' in English) is a Flemish daily newspaper published in Belgium by Mediahuis (formerly Corelio and VUM). It was traditionally a Christian-Democratic paper, associated with the Christian-Democratic and F ...

''. After disappointing sales it was quickly withdrawn from circulation after just seven months.

References

{{Dutch newspapers 2006 establishments in the Netherlands Dutch-language newspapers Mass media in Amsterdam Daily newspapers published in the Netherlands Publications established in 2006