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MX (newspaper)
Encyclopedia
mX is an Australia
n free afternoon daily newspaper
in the cities of Melbourne
, Sydney
and Brisbane
, owned and produced by News Limited
. Targeted at commuters, its main channels of distribution are inner-city railway stations, tram
and bus
stops, and major CBD
intersections.
on Tuesday 6 February 2001, hoping to capitalise on the Metro
format, popular in Europe. The paper contains lighter news and sports articles, often containing strange stories and facts from around the world (under the headings "Nice One" and, "What The?"). The newspaper's approach is a much greater focus on entertainment than news than broadsheet
newspapers, or even other tabloids.
Melbourne Express
, published by rival Fairfax Media
, was this paper's competitor. Initially it used the same format, although it was released in the mornings rather than the afternoon. It began publication the day before mX, but was soon overtaken due to mXs much broader use of colour, its greater availability, and its lighter tone. In addition, mX had no explanation at its launch, allowing readers to assume that it stood for "Melbourne Express" and that it was the paper known by that name. Melbourne Express ceased publication on 7 September 2001.
The broad success of mX contributed to reduced sales of the afternoon edition of News Corporation stablemate the Herald Sun
, the last edition being published on December 21, 2001.
Following the success of mX in Melbourne, Sydney
and Brisbane
editions were since launched.
On 4 July 2005, mX launched a Sydney edition. Sydney City Council
is considering a tender to lease Sydney footpaths to News Corporation for $362,000 annually, and charge other free daily newspaper
a similar fee if they use the same location more than 40 times a year. Other newspapers, such as Green Left Weekly
that are distributed by sellers on streets, are concerned about the possibility that they may be required to also pay such fees.
The Brisbane
edition of mX was launched on 5 March 2007, with an expected distribution of 40,000 copies per day.
In the 29 November 2006 Melbourne issue, a map was shown saying that mX was no longer available at Southern Cross Station
due to an agreement between the station and Fairfax, publishers of The Age
and defunct Melbourne Express. mX did, however, gain approval from the City of Melbourne to use a thin stetch of land out the front of Southern Cross Station adjacent to Spencer Street that it is not controlled by Southern Cross Station. This arrangement now sees mX distributors handing out copies once again at the Collins Street and Bourke Street entrances to Southern Cross Station
, commencing from early 2007, and permanent street stands, similar to those throughout the Melbourne CBD, now in place at these entrances, on the council's land.
Central themes of most articles include U.S. celebrity gossip, new product lines, controversial events, rumours, celebrity trivia, and readers' gripes, amongst other attention-grabbing stories. Large photographs often appear without any related story, only a caption describing their contents; conversely, news stories are rarely accompanied by photographs. Small, large, and full page advertisements are also a major contributor to the paper's overall make-up.
, as they tend to remain contained and not blow around as much. This decision is also based on the capabilities of publishing equipment and whether binding systems are installed at the production facilities.
is modified to capitalize on major events, such as a tennis ball and racquet during the Australian Open
, and love hearts
and using rose scented ink during Valentine's Day
. On the day of the Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton
, the x was changed to a Union Jack and many pages said "The royal wedding" other pages said "Not the wedding" In the lead-up to both the 2007 federal election and 2010 federal election, the front page of each issue bore a "disclaimer" warning of the number of election stories (if any) contained within.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n free afternoon daily newspaper
Free daily newspaper
Free daily newspapers are distributed free of charge, either in central places in cities and towns, or with other newspapers. The revenues of such newspapers are based on advertising.-In the U.S.:...
in the cities of Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
and Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, owned and produced by News Limited
News Limited
News Limited is one of Australia's largest diversified media companies. The publicly listed company's interests span newspaper and magazine publishing, Internet, Pay TV, National Rugby League, market research, DVD and film distribution, and film and television production trading assets.News Limited...
. Targeted at commuters, its main channels of distribution are inner-city railway stations, tram
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
and bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
stops, and major CBD
Central business district
A central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city. In North America this part of a city is commonly referred to as "downtown" or "city center"...
intersections.
Beginnings
The first mX was published in MelbourneMelbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
on Tuesday 6 February 2001, hoping to capitalise on the Metro
Metro International
Metro International is a Swedish media company based in Luxembourg that publishes the Metro newspapers. Metro International's advertising sales have grown at a compound annual growth rate of 41% since launch of the first newspaper edition in 1995. It is a freesheet, meaning that distribution is...
format, popular in Europe. The paper contains lighter news and sports articles, often containing strange stories and facts from around the world (under the headings "Nice One" and, "What The?"). The newspaper's approach is a much greater focus on entertainment than news than broadsheet
Broadsheet
Broadsheet is the largest of the various newspaper formats and is characterized by long vertical pages . The term derives from types of popular prints usually just of a single sheet, sold on the streets and containing various types of material, from ballads to political satire. The first broadsheet...
newspapers, or even other tabloids.
Melbourne Express
Melbourne Express
Melbourne Express was a free newspaper distributed on weekday mornings at suburban railway stations in Melbourne, Australia.Melbourne Express was launched on 5 February 2001, one day before mX, another free newspaper also aimed at commuters, but distributed in the evenings. mX was, and still is,...
, published by rival Fairfax Media
Fairfax Media
Fairfax Media Limited is one of Australia's largest diversified media companies. The group's operations include newspapers, magazines, radios and digital media operating in Australia and New Zealand. Fairfax Media was founded by the Fairfax family as John Fairfax and Sons, later to become John...
, was this paper's competitor. Initially it used the same format, although it was released in the mornings rather than the afternoon. It began publication the day before mX, but was soon overtaken due to mXs much broader use of colour, its greater availability, and its lighter tone. In addition, mX had no explanation at its launch, allowing readers to assume that it stood for "Melbourne Express" and that it was the paper known by that name. Melbourne Express ceased publication on 7 September 2001.
The broad success of mX contributed to reduced sales of the afternoon edition of News Corporation stablemate the Herald Sun
Herald Sun
The Herald Sun is a morning tabloid newspaper based in Melbourne, Australia. It is published by The Herald and Weekly Times, a subsidiary of News Limited, itself a subsidiary of News Corporation. It is available for purchase throughout Melbourne, Regional Victoria, Tasmania, the Australian Capital...
, the last edition being published on December 21, 2001.
Sydney and Brisbane editions
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
and Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
editions were since launched.
On 4 July 2005, mX launched a Sydney edition. Sydney City Council
City of Sydney
The City of Sydney is the Local Government Area covering the Sydney central business district and surrounding inner city suburbs of the greater metropolitan area of Sydney, Australia...
is considering a tender to lease Sydney footpaths to News Corporation for $362,000 annually, and charge other free daily newspaper
Free daily newspaper
Free daily newspapers are distributed free of charge, either in central places in cities and towns, or with other newspapers. The revenues of such newspapers are based on advertising.-In the U.S.:...
a similar fee if they use the same location more than 40 times a year. Other newspapers, such as Green Left Weekly
Green Left Weekly
Green Left Weekly is an Australian radical left-wing newspaper, written by progressive activists to "present the views excluded by the big business media". It was published by the Democratic Socialist Perspective from its inception in 1990 until January 2010, when the DSP merged into the Socialist...
that are distributed by sellers on streets, are concerned about the possibility that they may be required to also pay such fees.
The Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
edition of mX was launched on 5 March 2007, with an expected distribution of 40,000 copies per day.
In the 29 November 2006 Melbourne issue, a map was shown saying that mX was no longer available at Southern Cross Station
Southern Cross Station
Southern Cross is a major railway station and transport hub in Melbourne Docklands, Victoria, Australia. It is located on Spencer Street between Collins and La Trobe Streets at the western edge of the central business district...
due to an agreement between the station and Fairfax, publishers of The Age
The Age
The Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
and defunct Melbourne Express. mX did, however, gain approval from the City of Melbourne to use a thin stetch of land out the front of Southern Cross Station adjacent to Spencer Street that it is not controlled by Southern Cross Station. This arrangement now sees mX distributors handing out copies once again at the Collins Street and Bourke Street entrances to Southern Cross Station
Southern Cross Station
Southern Cross is a major railway station and transport hub in Melbourne Docklands, Victoria, Australia. It is located on Spencer Street between Collins and La Trobe Streets at the western edge of the central business district...
, commencing from early 2007, and permanent street stands, similar to those throughout the Melbourne CBD, now in place at these entrances, on the council's land.
Format and content
Being a commuter newspaper, mX is much thinner than other daily newspapers.Central themes of most articles include U.S. celebrity gossip, new product lines, controversial events, rumours, celebrity trivia, and readers' gripes, amongst other attention-grabbing stories. Large photographs often appear without any related story, only a caption describing their contents; conversely, news stories are rarely accompanied by photographs. Small, large, and full page advertisements are also a major contributor to the paper's overall make-up.
Sections
- News – Short items of 'legitimate' news such as national and state politics, including the next day's weather forecast. Located on page 2.
- Juice – Celebrity gossip. Located on page 3.
- Sport – Located on the final two or three pages.
- Brainwave – The puzzles page, including a crosswordCrosswordA crossword is a word puzzle that normally takes the form of a square or rectangular grid of white and shaded squares. The goal is to fill the white squares with letters, forming words or phrases, by solving clues which lead to the answers. In languages that are written left-to-right, the answer...
, SudokuSudokuis a logic-based, combinatorial number-placement puzzle. The objective is to fill a 9×9 grid with digits so that each column, each row, and each of the nine 3×3 sub-grids that compose the grid contains all of the digits from 1 to 9...
and various other word games. Also includes a horoscopeHoroscopeIn astrology, a horoscope is a chart or diagram representing the positions of the Sun, Moon, planets, the astrological aspects, and sensitive angles at the time of an event, such as the moment of a person's birth. The word horoscope is derived from Greek words meaning "a look at the hours" In...
under the heading of "Should I get out of bed tomorrow?" - Talk – Essentially Letters to the Editor, although most letters are very short, having been sent via SMS. It is divided into several sections:
- Vent Your Spleen - Devoted to readers' SMSed complaints (often about public transport services), comments and thoughts.
- Overheard - Devoted to humorous or bizarre conversations overheard and sent in by readers.
- Here's Looking At You - In which readers write messages to people on public transport to whom they are attracted, in the hope that they will reply and arrange a date, or just to anonymously compliment them. Originally such messages appeared in the general 'Vent Your Spleen' section, but the practice became so popular that it was separated into its own section.
- Lost in Love - Readers' responses to a request from another reader for relationship advice, and an invitation to send replies to the next day's question.
- My Platform - A vox popVox populiVox populi , a Latin phrase that literally means voice of the people, is a term often used in broadcasting for interviews with members of the "general public".-Vox pop, the man on the street:...
in which three people on the street give a short response to a question.
- Flicks – That night's movie listings.
- The Box – Reviews of television programs screening that night.
- Program – That night's primetime (6:00pm - midnight) television listing.
- Citybeat – A weekly entertainment section with an emphasis on all genres of popular music, including CD and movie reviews, concert listings, band interviews and trivia. Appears on Thursdays.
- Goss & Glam – Magazine-style entertainment and fashion news. Located on the middle four pages.
- Quickie – A short interview with a famous person.
- CareerOne – Mainly job advertisements.
- Flirt – A weekly section focusing on love and relationships. Appears on Fridays.
Staples
Some mX editions have been stapledStaple (fastener)
A staple is a type of two-pronged fastener, usually metal, used for joining or binding materials together. Large staples might be used with a hammer or staple gun for masonry, roofing, corrugated boxes and other heavy-duty uses...
, as they tend to remain contained and not blow around as much. This decision is also based on the capabilities of publishing equipment and whether binding systems are installed at the production facilities.
Theming
Occasionally the mX mastheadMasthead (publishing)
The masthead is a list, published in a newspaper or magazine, of its staff. In some publications it names only the most senior individuals; in others, it may name many or all...
is modified to capitalize on major events, such as a tennis ball and racquet during the Australian Open
Australian Open
The Australian Open is the only Grand Slam tennis tournament held in the southern hemisphere. The tournament was held for the first time in 1905 and was last contested on grass in 1987. Since 1972 the Australian Open has been held in Melbourne, Victoria. In 1988, the tournament became a hard court...
, and love hearts
Heart (symbol)
The heart has long been used as a symbol to refer to the spiritual, emotional, moral, and in the past, also intellectual core of a human being...
and using rose scented ink during Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day
Saint Valentine's Day, commonly shortened to Valentine's Day, is an annual commemoration held on February 14 celebrating love and affection between intimate companions. The day is named after one or more early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine, and was established by Pope Gelasius I in 496...
. On the day of the Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton
Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton
The wedding of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, and Catherine Middleton took place on 29 April 2011 at Westminster Abbey in London. Prince William, the eldest son of Charles, Prince of Wales, first met Catherine Middleton in 2001, when both were studying at the University of St Andrews. Their...
, the x was changed to a Union Jack and many pages said "The royal wedding" other pages said "Not the wedding" In the lead-up to both the 2007 federal election and 2010 federal election, the front page of each issue bore a "disclaimer" warning of the number of election stories (if any) contained within.
- St. Patrick's Day editions have the blue captions replaced with green, and Irish themed stories fill the 'Did You Know' and 'What The?' sections.
- Easter editions do not change colour; however, the 'Did You Know' and 'What The?' sections relate to modern Easter stories (Such as the world's largest easter egg).