Exclusive: Independent to relaunch

One of the things about being a New Labour spin doctor is that occasionally you get to hear bits of media news and gossip. One such is about the relaunch of the Independent newspaper later this year.

The Independent is a publication which has a picture of a bird on the front cover, a front page devoted not to news but an attempt to highlight a particular issue using sensationalist and often wrong reporting, and its content is of interest mostly to Liberal Democrat voters. This puts it in direct competition with a very similar sort of publication, and as its sales figures show, it is suffering, hence the decision for a merger and relaunch.

From the beginning of December, the Independent will not be sold in newsagents, but instead delivered door to door by volunteers. Rather than having one edition for the whole country, its content and editorial line will vary by area, right down to street level. This hasn't been confirmed, but it appears that the headline being planned for the first edition is 'It's a Straight Choice'. And, finally, its name is going to be changed from 'The Independent' to 'Focus'.