Kuensel, the country’s first and oldest newspaper, is now publishing biweekly, releasing issues only twice a week, in a move to stay relevant and sustain financially. The change is expected to improve the quality of news while also engaging the audience through multimedia platforms, a revolution newsrooms worldwide are embracing to keep up with evolving audience behaviour due to rapid technological advancements.
Starting last weekend, Kuensel has stopped printing newspapers six days a week. Instead, it now releases its issues on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
According to Kuensel, publishing biweekly will reduce losses, particularly from advertising revenue. Kuensel says advertisements are now being sold less frequently to papers as agencies shift their focus to online advertising on major tech platforms such as Facebook.
“We want to adapt, and our aspiration is also to thrive in this rapidly changing media landscape and ecosystem. So that’s why we decided to go biweekly. Secondly, it also had to do a little bit with the cost factor. It definitely reduces our cost of taking out the newspaper from six to two now,” said Kinley Tshering, Managing Editor, Kuensel.
The Managing Editor added that most importantly, it will enable Kuensel to focus on delivering impactful stories.
The reporters acknowledged that the move will definitely allow them to provide their audiences with more investigative and comprehensive stories, without the pressure of daily writing.
“Now, the news is published twice a week. That way, we can write stories in more depth. It is more convenient for us while working, as we have more time to collect information and write the news in detail,” said Neten Dorji, Reporter, Kuensel.
However, Kuensel will still upload daily on their social media platforms, building their online presence through multimedia storytelling.
“When we decided to go bi-weekly, we also decided to adopt a digital-first approach. So basically, we are a daily news media company with a very strong presence online, through our website, and digital platforms every day,” said Kinley Tshering, Managing Editor, Kuensel.
“We have a multimedia team that will be handling the daily news updates online, mainly focusing on the immediate news that needs to be updated through visuals like interviews and footage,” said Karma Kelzang, Multimedia Journalist, Kuensel.
Kuensel has been a daily newspaper since 2009. Previously, it was published biweekly for five years, starting in 2005.
The decision to revert to a biweekly format, a response to the changing media landscape, is expected to meet the rising demand of the audience for instant, real-time updates on breaking news and ensure the organisation’s long-term relevance and survival.
Singye Dema & Rinchen Tsheyang Pelmo (Intern)
Edited by Phub Gyem
