The Basingstoke Observer is a local newspaper

Newspaper

A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...

 for the Basingstoke

Basingstoke

Basingstoke is a town in northeast Hampshire, in south central England. It lies across a valley at the source of the River Loddon. It is southwest of London, northeast of Southampton, southwest of Reading and northeast of the county town, Winchester. In 2008 it had an estimated population of...

 and surrounding areas of north Hampshire

Hampshire

Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...

, in England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. The newspaper is published weekly, and is available free for readers to 'pick up' from various shops and public outlets in and around Basingstoke. Basingstoke Property Weekly is inserted as a free supplement.

The newspaper was launched in association with local radio station Kestrel FM

107.6 Kestrel FM

Kestrel FM is the local radio station covering Alton, Basingstoke, Bordon, Four Marks, Haslemere, Hindhead, Petersfield and the surrounding area of Hampshire, and Surrey UK.-History:...

 in 2000, and was owned by the Milestone Group

Milestone Group

The Milestone Group is a British Technology company. Originally a cross media proprietor who had holdings in radio, publishing and television, it now focuses on digital solutions and creates websites and mobile applications...

 until it was sold in a management buyout in September 2006, its owners now being Tri-Media Publishing. Its weekly circulation figure is advertised as 23,000 copies. It is a sister publication to the Oxford Journal

Oxford Journal

The Oxford Journal is a free newspaper distributed throughout the city of Oxford and county of Oxfordshire, UK. It is published by TriMedia, who also publish other free newspapers including the Oxfordshire Guardian, Basingstoke Observer, Oxford Property Weekly and Auto Weekly Papers.-Early...

.