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Tabloidization Conquers Quality Press

Stjepan Malovic, Gordana Vilovic

What Is Quality Press?

Readers should not be asked what ‘quality press’ is because they unmistakably recognize it at
newsstands. Do readers buy it? They usually don’t, because the quality press has never sought to
attract buyers and readers by running huge, bold headlines, outsize photos, and short but juicy
stories.
The definition of quality press is ambiguous and not too many theorists try to formulate
one. American authors do not care much about the definition of quality press. Watson and Hill’s
authoritative Dictionary of Media & Communication Studies does not define ‘quality press’ or
‘relevant press’ or even ‘broadsheet’ among its numerous and detailed definitions. It is not any
different when it comes to one of the best American textbooks, News Reporting&Writing by the
Missouri Group.
There are only minor differences in the definitions of ‘quality press’, i.e. ‘broadsheet
papers’, in the US and Great Britain. ‘The broadsheet newspaper format is always used by
newspapers with large, stable home or office circulation and somewhat smaller street sales, such
as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and the Los Angeles Times. The front page
generally contains a number of stories. American newspapers usually put no ads on the first page
to underscore the importance of the news’ (Hiebert-Gibbons 2000: 142). The British definition is
that ‘“qualities” – or the “heavies” are known for their elaborate news coverage and editorial.
The articles are generally written by specialists. The account is informative and not highly
exaggerated or sensational’.1
Colin Sparks, Professor of Media Studies at the Centre for Communication and
Information Studies at the University of Westminster, has made researches on the process of
media tabloidization. He has also researched the possible ways of developing a media market in
Southeastern European countries after 1990, and has given a short and transparent definition of
the quality press: ‘Quality newspapers are large format newspapers that report news in depth,

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www.bl.uk/collections/newspaper/britnews/html.
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often with serious tone and higher level language. News is dominated by national and
international events, politics, business, with less emphasis on celebrities and gossip’.2
The theory of journalism recognizes a division of daily papers into morning and evening
papers. The time of publication is no longer a vital guideline for those two types of papers; the
guideline is the way they feature events.
Serious and analytical daily papers usually have a large format and present events
analytically, extensively and comprehensively. Their readers are usually well-educated,
occupying middle and senior job levels, and for them newspapers are a valuable source of
information, different opinions and attitudes. The readers of morning daily newspapers (in
Britain such papers are called ‘broadsheets’) expect balanced, analytic and unbiased reporting;
they also expect commentaries and reviews to be based upon facts and clearly verified assertions.
It is obvious that such readers are rare and this makes the circulation of the papers in question
low, especially in comparison with tabloids, but nevertheless their circulation is far from
insignificant. Each country has such papers and they are usually highly respected: for example,
The New York Times, The Guardian, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Corriere della Serra or
Delo.
Evening papers target a wide range of the population. Information is offered in a short,
concise form, headlines are printed in huge fonts, photographs are widely used, and stories are
lavishly illustrated. These papers are more focused on stories that interest ‘ordinary people’; that
is why political matters are minimized while scandals, crime, the world of entertainment, sports,
film, and television are given prominence. The stories need not be of inferior quality; indeed,
they might be of high quality but the mode of presentation is populist. They are usually printed
in small format and their circulation is sometimes astronomic, running to millions of copies
(Malovic 1995: 89).
There are also tabloids, but their definition varies from country to country. Still, the core
definition of a tabloid is that it publishes sensational information about the private life of
prominent people. The more prominent the person and more sensational the story, the better.
American tabloids are a little bit different; they publish stories such as: ‘A woman conceived by
an alien’ or ‘A cow gave birth to three healthy ducks’. Their circulation is high but their
reputation is zero.
Weeklies, fortnightlies and monthlies are also clearly and precisely divided into quality
newsmagazines and opinion makers that cover topical events in a serious, analytical and

2
www.fc.vdu.lt/e-media/md/pres.html.
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documented way, and entertaining periodicals intended for a particular gender or age group, or
covering different areas of interest such as sports, music, fishing, computers, and many others.

Is There Any Quality Press?

The question ‘Why isn’t there more quality press?’ should be rephrased as ‘Do we, at all, need
quality press?’ or ‘Do we still know what the quality press is like?’
When did we last read quality press? Do any of the present newspapers belong to the
‘quality press’? If the answer is affirmative, what papers deserve this qualification and why? And
if we don’t have any quality press, when did we last have it and why?
Nowadays, the Croatian papers have lost certain theoretically known stylistic features. The
first impression is that there are no clearly defined newspapers. Daily newspapers combine
different styles and, as a result, we can find stories that are stylistically close to tabloids even in
newspapers which aspire to be quality press; or we can find stories by distinguished academics in
tabloids.
All this confuses the readers, who can no longer recognize what newspapers offer them;
that is why they give up traditional papers in search of something new, but they are no longer
certain precisely which newspaper to choose. Intellectuals are especially unhappy because hybrid
papers do not suit them and newspapers that address serious topics do not meet quality standards
or are politically biased.

The Situation in Croatia

Croatia has been desperately searching for its lost quality press in the last ten years. Where are
erstwhile pearls of quality, such as Start, Danas, Vjesnik in the times of its glorious foreign
policy or culture pages, or Slobodna Dalmacija? What has happened to clearly profiled
newspapers like Svijet, Nedjeljna Dalmacija, Telegram or Oko? Where are the successors to
Veselko Tenzera, featuring style, knowledge and clear attitudes? Are there editors like the
legendary Frane Barbieri or Sead Saracevic?
Times have changed and nothing is or can be as it used to be. The new age has brought
new newspapers. It is impossible to duplicate in the new social, economic and cultural
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circumstances the same methods and styles that used to be so efficient in the past. What is the
main reason for the drop in newspaper quality, and why has this occurred at all?

The Deadly Impact of Market Economy

The newspaper market has not yet been fully defined. Distribution is still monopolized, although
politics does not play as negative a role as it used to play in Tudjman’s era when political
decisions were made as to which papers would have better distribution and, accordingly, higher
sales. But there still isn’t a real market. Newspapers are considered goods as any other and are
subject to 22% VAT, which directly affects their price. Dailies cost 6 Kuna, or approximately 0.8
Euro. If a person wants to buy their favourite daily every day, they have to spend 180 Kuna or 24
Euro per month. If we add another 12 Kuna per week for a newsmagazine or opinion maker, the
cost will increase to 228 Kuna or approximately 28 Euro per month. The average net salary in
Croatia was 3,776 Kuna (around 500 Euro) in March 2003, according to data published by the
Croatian Statistics Institute. The monthly cost of only one daily and weekly, however high-
quality they might be, is too high in comparison with other living costs. Readers do not buy
newspapers any more; an even smaller number buy newspapers from newsstands. That is why
editors have been forced to use all means to attract buyers, including by huge sensational
headlines, scandals, gossip, crime, and sex. These are not characteristic of the quality press, and
that is why the latter has no chance in competition on the market.
The overall economic situation, in which a large number of people have low or inadequate
salaries, has endangered the class of intellectuals mostly because they have never been among
the well-paid professionals. High-school teachers, civil servants, artists, and writers have been
impoverished to such a degree that they can hardly satisfy their cultural needs. Papers, books,
theatres and concerts are the first to be sacrificed. The quality press is faced with a double threat:
the general decrease of circulation due to the population’s lower purchasing power, and the
impoverishment of its specific target group, i.e. intellectuals.

Reading Is Getting Harder

Reading is a serious matter, especially when it comes to quality press. Readers are expected to
have not only basic knowledge but also higher levels of education to be able to read the quality
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press. The last census conducted in 2001 has dispelled the last illusions about Croatia. Namely,
we have always believed that despite the fact that the communist regime, a brutal and
devastating war, and a decade of Tudjman’s authoritarian regime have left deep traces, we are, if
nothing else, a well educated nation. Unfortunately, the census showed that only 7.4% of
Croatian citizens aged over 15 have higher education! In the developed European countries, up
to 30% of the population have higher education. The difference is obvious. The drastic decrease
in the number of citizens with a higher level of education has decreased a natural target group of
the quality press. The 4.4% of the country’s population without elementary school education or
the 23.7% with only elementary school education are not readers of the quality press. Their
choice is tabloids – but after television, the most powerful media.
People have also lost the habit of reading. A decade without quality press has produced a
generation of new readers who simply don’t know what a good story is. Generations of young,
insufficiently educated people lacking reading habits look in amazement at the broadsheet
Vjesnik and its long stories that expertly analyze the present political situation in the Middle
East, review Eurokaz theatre shows and the exposition in Graz (Austria) or feature a long
interview about the economic impact of new roads upon the development of mountainous
regions in Croatia. Whatever!

The Devastating Influence of TV Commercials

Commercials have dramatically changed the ways of expression: Everything can be said in 30
seconds and quite often even in less than 10 seconds. Coca-Cola commercials tell a life story in a
few seconds. Everything is well known and nothing should be added. Except, perhaps, for a sip
of Coke. This style, with which generations have been brought up, has transferred to newspapers.
‘TV newspaper’ style is simplistic: everything is said directly, everything can be seen at a glance
the very moment a page is displayed. Tomislav Wruss, editor-in-chief of Jutarnji List, explains
that this very concept has played the main role in the market success of Jutarnji List. Wruss says
that Jutarnji List has introduced a major novelty in the appearance and presentation of
newspapers in Croatia: ‘Our achievement is spectacularism: Croatian media have entered an era
of entertainment journalism with Jutarnji List’ (Globus, 11 April 2003: 77). Headlines and
layout have become news – one does not need to read the story, especially if it is ten pages long,
if one has read the headline and understood the layout. Globus and Nacional have abandoned the
quality headlines of Feral Tribune, asserting a fatal headline style that no longer requires a story.
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Tabloidization Destroys Quality Press

Let us remember how reputable world theoreticians explain tabloid newspaper formats, very
popular today globally. Global media moguls built their media empires exactly on the concept of
tabloids and this brought them enormous revenues. Marvin Kalb, director of the Shorenstein
Centre on the Press, Politics and Public Affairs at Harvard University defines tabloidese as
‘downgrading of hard news and upgrading of sex, scandal and infotainment’ (Watson and Hill
2000: 307).
A very simple definition of tabloids came from the British journalist John Ryan at a
conference (‘Student Voice’) held at Hvar (October 2000) and devoted to differences in the
understanding of yellow journalism in Western countries and Croatia: ‘[A tabloid] is a
journalistic product that primarily deals with three S’s: scandal, sex and sports’.
Selimas Miller also explains yellow journalism practices in the West and talks about three
basic functions of such papers. According to Miller, ‘the first function is to inform and entertain
readers, the second is to sell as many copies as possible and the third is to attract as many
advertisers as possible’ (Miller 2001: 283). Miller’s logical explanation faces us with a very
simple calculation: a bigger number of readers attracts stronger interest by advertisers and,
consequently, higher profits for editors.
Tabloids, on the other hand, need not be easily read papers that are meant to entertain.
They can also be respectable papers. In his definition of tabloids, Richard Weiner stresses the
factor of credibility: ‘Tabloid is a newspaper of less-than-standard size, generally about 1,000-
1,200 agate lines on a page that is 14 inches high and has four or more columns. … Originally
published for mass appeal, tabloids featured large sensational headlines on the front page and
developed a disreputable reputation. Today, tabloids are an important part of journalism and
include the Christian Science Monitor and Newsday, as well as the National Enquirer and some
other large-circulation weeklies’ (Weiner 1990: 477).
Frank Esser introduces the concept of tabloidization. In his text ‘Tablodization of News: A
Comparative Analysis of Anglo-American and German Press Journalism’, in which he describes
differences in changes occurring in the process of tabloidization of media, he distinguishes
changes on micro and macro levels. ‘On micro level, tabloidization can be viewed as a media
phenomenon involving the revision of traditional newspaper and other media formats driven by
reader preferences and commercial requirements. On the macro level, tabloidization can be seen
as a social phenomenon both instigating and symbolizing major changes to the constitution of
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society (signs being, for example, attaching less importance to education and more to political
marketing, resulting in an increase in political alienation)’ (Esser 1999).
Esser’s explanation of tabloidization sets out from Howard Kurtz’s standpoint that,
analyzing changes in American media at the beginning of the 1990s, first used the term. Kurtz
believes that American newspaper publishers in the 90s simply ‘wanted to show a friendly face
to the readers. Hard news is out. Relevance is in. Thousands of newspapers have been
redesigned; front pages with huge photographs and small text frames that announce stories
dominate the redesigned newspapers’ (Kurtz 1993: 339).
Esser goes a step further and broadens the phenomenon of tabloidization, describing it as a
‘process that has been going on for some time’ and noting ‘that it includes contamination of the
so-called quality media that have accepted the concept of tabloids’, ‘that tabloidization is not
uniform on the international level but needs to be looked at separately in each specific
environment, depending on specific cultural, historical and heritage factors’ (Esser 1999).
This theoretical definition of the global phenomenon of tabloidization can also be applied
to Croatia, i.e. to the changes in newspapers following the changes in the political system after
1990.

Croatian Quality Press

The general tabloidization of global media has had devastating effects on Croatian newspapers,
inflicting irreparable damage. It is a sort of paradox that we have been talking more about
tabloidization than about values of the quality press, but this trend has been so pervasive that it is
very difficult to talk about media without analyzing the influence of tabloidization today.

Bright Tradition

Croatian newspapers originated in difficult circumstances, and they have always been exposed to
some negative influences. After the Second World War the Soviet media model prevailed; in this
model the media had only one vital role and that was promotion of the points of view and
policies of the ruling communist party. The source of this model was in the former USSR and it
was replicated verbatim in all socialist states. But Tito’s way to communism differed from the
Soviet one; it was softer, the borders were open and Western influences could more easily enter
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the country. The media could not get rid of communist party influence altogether, but they could
implement professional standards of Western-style journalism, they were successful on the
market, and professionally they were quite often on a high quality level. Of course, readers
always had to ‘purge’ stories of communist propaganda, but they were used to it and were able to
read between the lines. In the decades of Tito’s rule, there were times of liberalization and
enthralment, and media freedom grew. Reporters skilfully used those times and managed to
produce good and widely read newspapers. The leading role belonged to Vjesnik, a Zagreb-
based publishing house that published the daily of the same name, a quality newspaper modelled
on Italian and German newspapers; it also published the high-circulation Vecernji List, a kind of
tabloid with serious political topics. Vjesnik also had a reputable production of publications of
various profiles, among which Vjesnik u Srijedu, better known as VUS, had a leading position
and was an important opinion maker with far-reaching influence. It was at the peak of its
popularity and impact in the 60s, but in the political purges of 1971 it suffered a severe setback,
just like the majority of Croatian politicians. VUS never recovered from the blow. In the 80s,
VUS was succeeded by Danas, a weekly newsmagazine that was published despite clear
opposition from the communist boss Vladimir Bakaric, who publicly declared that there were no
competent journalists in Croatia to publish and edit such a magazine. Danas became one of the
most influential Yugoslav weeklies that distinctively opposed Milosevic’s policies. But this
reputable weekly closed down following the political changes. In Tudjman’s era the Feral
Tribune, formerly a satirical weekly supplement of the Split-based daily Slobodna Dalmacija,
appeared as an independent weekly. Feral is a combination of satirical and serious, an analytical
opinion maker. Using brisk and uncompromising satire in combination with critical and
analytical stories, it was the first and only one to oppose the flaws of the Tudjman regime, which
earned it an international reputation and numerous awards.
There were a few high-quality dailies in Croatia too. Vjesnik was the forerunner of serious
and analytical journalism in the communist era. A team of reputable and high-class
professionals, great editors and brisk writers, knew how to avoid directions given by the Party
ideologists and to edit respectable papers with excellent world politics columns, a prestigious
cultural column, an excellent business section, feuilletons, science and similar topics that
escaped the attention of political censors. Vjesnik likewise became a victim of the political
purges in the 70s and its glory faded. But the good tradition and reputation were passed on to
other newspapers, therefore one can describe this as a ripe era of Croatian journalism that was
based on professional standards but was also under the influence of the ruling communist
ideology. That is how a kind of hybrid journalism emerged – journalism that was of top quality
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under the circumstances, but was nonetheless invalid in its basic aspect, i.e. truthful and correct
informing.
At the end of the 80s, when communism started to decline, there appeared an excellent
editor, Josko Kulusic, who turned a Split-based local daily with a long tradition – Slobodna
Dalmacija – into a leading daily in the former Yugoslavia. Slobodna Dalmacija was one of the
best edited daily newspapers in former Yugoslavia, run by editor-in-chief Josko Kulusic from
1983 to 1993. Kemal Kurspahic, the legendary editor-in-chief of the Sarajevo-based daily
Oslobodjenje during the war years in the 1990s, says the following about Slobodna Dalmacija
and Josko Kulusic: ‘Josko Kulusic was probably one of the best editors of a daily in former
Yugoslavia. His daily was neither a federal newspaper as Borba [in Yugoslavia] nor a national
paper as Politika in Serbia, Vjesnik in Croatia or Oslobodjenje in Bosnia, but a regional daily
based in Split. Kulusic’s vision and complete dedication to professional journalism transformed
Slobodna Dalmacija into the most eminent Croatian daily’ (Kurspahic 2003: XVI).
But it seems that no quality paper in Croatia is destined to last long. After Tudjman took
over, Slobodna Dalmacija became a prototype of a regime newspaper. Kulusic, who was
dismissed from Slobodna Dalmacija in 1993, started a new paper, Dan, but he soon died,
literally editing his paper and trying to uncompromisingly fight for the freedom of journalism.
Other Croatian newspaper had a similar fate. The new authorities did not tolerate independent
newspapers and quite soon all the papers were strictly controlled by Tudjman. Almost all of
them. But it seems that total control is impossible. A daily from Rijeka, Novi List, a newspaper
similar to Slobodna Dalmacija with a long and bright tradition, became the only daily with open
editorial policies that enabled publishing the opinions and attitudes of those who opposed the
system. Its excellent editor Veljko Vicevic paid the price for his liberalism; he died soon, just
like Kulusic, editing stories for next day’s issue.

The Modest Present

Today, at the end of the term of the new government that replaced Tudjman’s authoritarian style
of government, we cannot be satisfied with the status of media. Generally speaking, the situation
is much better, there is no longer rigid and direct control of media, there is greater freedom – but
there are no good newspapers. Decades of authoritarian government, repression of media
freedom, decrease of circulation, poverty, poor educational level, manipulations and pressures
have taken their toll. Tabloids prevail, the reputation of journalists is low and people’s trust in
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the media is even lower; the few newspapers which are trying to do their job professionally do
not have high circulation or power. The sometime reputable Feral Tribune is losing its edge;
Vjesnik is trying to regain its former reputation and influence but has problems with low
circulation. Attempts to revive sometime famed weeklies have failed.

The Uncertain Future

What is the future of the quality press in Croatia? Could Vjesnik, just like the former leading
papers in Slovenia and Hungary Delo and Nepszabadsag, come back and become a reputable
daily? Is there a chance that Feral Tribune will find the strength and once again, against all the
odds, will restore its leading position of an internationally recognized newspaper in Croatia? Or,
there might appear some new products, based on principles of high journalistic standards,
unburdened by the past that weighs down heavily all existing newspapers. The new Internet
publishers already have their celebrities. New media, new people. However, newspapers follow
different principles, they require much higher investments, big money is in the game, and it is
not easy to start a new product that will recoup the initial investment – especially in the market
and social circumstances described at the beginning of this text. Therefore, the conclusion is not
very optimistic and, in any case, not many things can happen overnight. The quality press is, we
believe, the only certain future for newspapers in their competition with other media. It is
difficult to compete with almighty television, to catch up with omnipresent radio and to have an
eye on the incredibly fast development of the Internet which has virtually infinite possibilities.
Newspapers can compete only by producing serious, analytical and critical stories by top
journalists, experts, and editors who pursue open and liberal editorial policies. All of these take
time, energy, knowledge, and a little bit of luck.
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