Quotes of the Day

There's a big story swirling around U.S. newsrooms, and it reads like an obituary. Consider: average U.S. newspaper circulation slid 2.5% in the half-year to April, and even the most successful papers are cutting staff. You'd think this would be enough to deter new competitors. But just as mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun, so British publishers are venturing into the glare of the U.S. market. Last week, a trimmed-down version of London's Times hit newsstands in New York and New Jersey. Guardian Newspapers ceo Carolyn McCall also hinted at plans to launch a U.S. print edition.

Like the Guardian, the Times already boasts a strong online following in the U.S.: 40% of its unique monthly visitors are Stateside. But success online won't necessarily spell the same on paper. The Times is "appealing to a thin slice of the American market," says John Morton, head of Maryland-based media consultancy Morton Research. "People who already read the Wall Street Journal or the New York Times, online and off."

The newcomer, with its beefier international coverage, arts and business news, will appeal to "information-hungry people ... [who] have not given up on newspapers," reckons Robert Thomson, editor of the Times. "They want a different take, a more extensive take." But he doesn't just want to sell newspapers. "To have the Times on the streets of Manhattan is a wonderful advertising campaign for Times Online." Even with a print-run of just 10,000, that's a pricey campaign. Thomson, however, insists the edition will turn a profit within a year. No doubt you'll read all about it.

• ADAM SMITH
• A British newspaper sets out its stall in the U.S.