The daily newspaper *Le Matin* must set itself apart from its own free clone, *Le Matin Bleu*, to prevent its readership from declining further.
«Le Matin needs to become more like a magazine and clearly distinguish itself from free and regional newspapers in terms of both content and design,» says Peter Rothenbühler, editor-in-chief of the daily newspaper Le Matin. More in-depth coverage is the new magic word. «The format is not up for debate,» he emphasizes, because his beloved tabloid format is not to blame for the fact that the paper has lost 20,000 of its well over 300,000 readers and is now laying off six journalists to cut costs. Le Matin had been on the road to success with the new format—’a meteoric rise since 2002, gaining around 20,000 new readers per year’—until the free newspapers arrived. The task now is to position *Le Matin orange* in such a way that readers are willing to pay two francs for the journalistic value added by the paid newspaper.
The Magic Formula Has Failed. This admission is significant. Until now, Edipresse has vociferously insisted that the publisher had found the magic formula: Having one paid and one free newspaper—Le Matin and Le Matin Bleu—under the same brand umbrella would prevent advertising clients from defecting to the competition, namely Tamedia’s free paper, 20 minutes. For this reason, Edipresse launched Le Matin Bleu, even at the risk of cannibalizing the tabloid Le Matin and, by extension, its own regional newspapers.
24 heures in Lausanne and the Tribune de Genève have already implemented their cost-cutting measures; now it’s Le Matin’s turn to foot the bill for competition from free newspapers. The editorial staff is being cut from 87 to 81 journalists; one of the deputy editors-in-chief must leave and will be replaced by two new editors from the Sunday edition’s editorial staff. Cuts are being made across the board; even seasoned and experienced journalists have been laid off—a real bloodletting, according to the shocked editorial staff. However, the staff is taking the measures announced at the end of August with a touch of relief: According to an insider, the real disaster scenario would have been a merger between Le Matin and Le Matin Bleu.
Suspicions that a merger of the two newspapers might be in the works had been reinforced by the Matin’s recently modernized layout: With shorter articles, a simpler layout, and a move away from the playful use of photos, the orange *Matin* has looked almost exactly like its blue counterpart in recent months—according to Rothenbühler, the layout concept was created by the same graphic designer. The assumption that a merger might be on the horizon was not unfounded. Meanwhile, even Théo Bouchat, head of Edipresse Switzerland, admits: «We ran through all the scenarios.» The merger between the free and paid newspapers had been «one of several working hypotheses.» However, it was not pursued further. The idea that the new layout was intended to pave the way for a merger is a false impression. But the fact that many people nevertheless had this false impression «may also be due to communication errors on our part.».
Between a Rock and a Hard Place: Regardless of whether there were communication or conceptual errors, Bouchat, too, remains convinced that launching a free newspaper under the Le Matin brand was the right decision, «even if we had to choose between a rock and a hard place.» With these two titles, the brand is now better positioned in the market than if Edipresse had done nothing to counter the competition from 20 minutes. From a business perspective, too, the move has been a success: «The results of the free newspaper lead us to believe that we will hold our own in the market.» And from an editorial standpoint, the duo now meets needs that no one else would have covered before.
Is the Editor-in-Chief Still Acceptable? So, just a storm in a teacup? Not quite. The shock of the layoffs runs deep. These days, the employees are conducting an internal vote to determine whether the editor-in-chief still has their trust. Even though it wasn’t Rothenbühler who initiated the switch to the tabloid format and the tabloidization of the paper—but rather, among others, his predecessor Théo Bouchat—Rothenbühler is, in the eyes of many, the man from Zurich who is nonetheless responsible for the new *Matin*. «He bridged the Röstigraben between Blick and Matin,» is the sentiment heard in the newsroom. Before Rothenbühler, the newspaper—conceived as a down-to-earth family paper—had always prided itself on distinguishing itself from the tabloid style on the other side of the Saane.
Whatever the outcome of the confidence vote in the editorial department may be, it is not expected to have any impact on Peter Rothenbühler’s position. Bouchat emphasizes: «The editor-in-chief continues to have our full confidence.»
The Edipresse director attributes the vote «to emotions»: The shift in trends—attributable to the free newspapers—following the huge success of the Tabloid-Matin has been emotionally taxing, and from that perspective, the staff’s reaction is understandable. Nevertheless, Rothenbühler finds himself in a difficult situation. With fewer people and fewer resources than before, he must pull off the feat of turning a tabloid into a «magazine-style» publication. At *Blick*, they’re giving themselves until early next year to consider similar changes, while at *Matin*, the first changes are expected to be noticeable in just two to three weeks. Rothenbühler also promises graphic changes by the end of the year.
Le Matin, Once a Free Newspaper: The question remains whether readers will ever be willing to pay two francs for Le Matin, which, as a non-subscription newspaper, is available at the same locations as the free newspapers. The same goes for the question of whether the market isn’t simply too small for two free papers plus Le Matin. For Bruno Clément of the Comedia union, the answer is a clear yes. He muses, «Perhaps one day Le Matin will become a free newspaper, and the only paid publication will be the major Sunday edition, Le Matin Dimanche, with its supplements.»
Helen Brügger
Trendsetters and Topic Leaders «We conducted a qualitative study with readers in July. »They have a clear idea of what they expect from us: sports, celebrities, and news in brief,« says Rothenbühler. He wants to »select and surprise”—that is, to include five major, thoroughly researched articles alongside the shorter pieces in every issue.”.
Furthermore, all
major political events «make it into the paper through the key figures involved»—in other words, are personalized. Third, his paper should become a trendsetter and set the agenda
He will also be active in the political arena and make his mark with editorials and personal commentary. «These are things I’ve actually wanted to do for a long time, but I just didn’t have the right people for it.» Now, with Ariane Dayer and Michel Jeanneret, he has
Two editors were transferred from *Matin Dimanche* and appointed as his deputies; they have indeed made a name for themselves through their high-caliber journalism. Ariane Dayer, 43, was editor-in-chief of the Ringier weekly L’Hebdo before founding her own satirical newspaper, Saturne—an anachronistic gem in the French-speaking Swiss media scene that was not destined to have a long run. (hb)The “switch-over effect” remains unclearThe young readership of the free press as a potential customer base for the major paid newspapers: that is what publishers dream of. Tamedia’s latest project—to launch a joint free newspaper in collaboration with Espace Media Groupe and Basler Medien—also aims to capitalize on this so-called “switch effect.” Le Matin is the only paid publication in Switzerland with a free extension under the same brand. There, one would have to
This effect can be observed. But Théo Bouchat, head of Edipresse Switzerland, dismisses the idea: «We have no evidence of this effect because we don’t have enough experience yet. The free press is still too new.» (rw)
