Press campaigners who
publish genuine sporting news via the WEEKLY SPORT project, have seen a
marketplace victory as UK retailers seek to 'bin or bag' sleazy soft porn titles
called, misleadingly, Sunday SPORT and Midweek SPORT.
The WEEKLY SPORT is
owned and published by Independent News Limited, who actively sought to
establish digital and print titles that truly did as they said on the tin -
provide 24/7 coverage of the week's sport.
This proved to be a great success, particularly prior to the run-up, and during, the London Olympic and Paralympic Games. The same team had also been involved with THE SON newspaper, a Christian themed red top, and the highly successful men's lifestyle title, SORTED magazine, which sells in volume via WHSmith,
Last week the Co-operative supermarket refused to stock two newspapers and four lads’ magazines.Their decision came after these titles refused the Co-op’s request that they should be sold in opaque 'modesty bags' to safeguard their main customer base.
The WEEKLY SPORT, SORTED and THE SON newspaper teams say they "could see this coming a mile off" and "welcome the decision as a positive step to prevent offence to women and family shoppers, and to protect children." Ethical and family based publishing has always been key to their editorial and marketing policy.
Co-operative Group chief executive of retail Steve Murrells agrees with these policies, and says: "As a community-based retailer, we have listened to and acted upon the concerns of our customers and members, many of whom said they objected to their children being able to see overt sexual images in our stores."
The deceptively named Midweek and Sunday Sport newspapers, who actually publish blatant soft porn and sex industry advertising, with very little actual sporting news content, initially agreed to adopt sealed 'modesty bags'. However, their publisher has now told the Co-op that they will no longer comply with the request and will continue to mislead the public. As a result wholesale orders of the offending titles have been binned by the supermarket giant.
The Co-op chief executive reasserted his point of view: “We believe individual, sealed modesty bags are the most effective way of addressing these concerns, so we will no longer be stocking the titles that have failed to meet our request. This action will make our stores more attractive to families with young children, by creating a more family-friendly shopping environment.”
Meanwhile, since their title does not require 'modesty bagging', the campaigning team behind the WEEKLY SPORT project have received some surprise additional venture capitalist support to take their ethical, news sport brand to a much wider marketplace. Investor, Jason Courage, who was so impressed by the positive coverage of the Paralympics, and is himself a longterm wheelchair user, believes the appetite for sporting news coverage continues to be a growing and bankable market.
Courage makes the point: "Observing how SORTED magazine has actually gained readers by adhering to a strong moral editorial approach, convinces me that members of the same team can create a winning formula with a national tabloid newspaper such as the WEEKLY SPORT."
Unlike its rivals, copies of SORTED lads' magazine will remain available at all good stores without the need for censorship covers. Likewise, the WEEKLY SPORT will remain committed to a one hundred percent genuine sport editorial policy.
Ultimately, though, both the Co-op's Steve Murrells and 'angel' investor Jason Courage agree upon one thing: "The consumer has the final say - you pays your money and you takes your choice..."
Here are the three ethical media trendsetters you may choose to follow...
@weeklysport @thesonpaper @sortedmagazine
This proved to be a great success, particularly prior to the run-up, and during, the London Olympic and Paralympic Games. The same team had also been involved with THE SON newspaper, a Christian themed red top, and the highly successful men's lifestyle title, SORTED magazine, which sells in volume via WHSmith,
Last week the Co-operative supermarket refused to stock two newspapers and four lads’ magazines.Their decision came after these titles refused the Co-op’s request that they should be sold in opaque 'modesty bags' to safeguard their main customer base.
The WEEKLY SPORT, SORTED and THE SON newspaper teams say they "could see this coming a mile off" and "welcome the decision as a positive step to prevent offence to women and family shoppers, and to protect children." Ethical and family based publishing has always been key to their editorial and marketing policy.
Co-operative Group chief executive of retail Steve Murrells agrees with these policies, and says: "As a community-based retailer, we have listened to and acted upon the concerns of our customers and members, many of whom said they objected to their children being able to see overt sexual images in our stores."
The deceptively named Midweek and Sunday Sport newspapers, who actually publish blatant soft porn and sex industry advertising, with very little actual sporting news content, initially agreed to adopt sealed 'modesty bags'. However, their publisher has now told the Co-op that they will no longer comply with the request and will continue to mislead the public. As a result wholesale orders of the offending titles have been binned by the supermarket giant.
The Co-op chief executive reasserted his point of view: “We believe individual, sealed modesty bags are the most effective way of addressing these concerns, so we will no longer be stocking the titles that have failed to meet our request. This action will make our stores more attractive to families with young children, by creating a more family-friendly shopping environment.”
Meanwhile, since their title does not require 'modesty bagging', the campaigning team behind the WEEKLY SPORT project have received some surprise additional venture capitalist support to take their ethical, news sport brand to a much wider marketplace. Investor, Jason Courage, who was so impressed by the positive coverage of the Paralympics, and is himself a longterm wheelchair user, believes the appetite for sporting news coverage continues to be a growing and bankable market.
Courage makes the point: "Observing how SORTED magazine has actually gained readers by adhering to a strong moral editorial approach, convinces me that members of the same team can create a winning formula with a national tabloid newspaper such as the WEEKLY SPORT."
Unlike its rivals, copies of SORTED lads' magazine will remain available at all good stores without the need for censorship covers. Likewise, the WEEKLY SPORT will remain committed to a one hundred percent genuine sport editorial policy.
Ultimately, though, both the Co-op's Steve Murrells and 'angel' investor Jason Courage agree upon one thing: "The consumer has the final say - you pays your money and you takes your choice..."
Here are the three ethical media trendsetters you may choose to follow...
@weeklysport @thesonpaper @sortedmagazine
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