The ''Irish Daily Mail'' is a newspaper published in
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
and
:Northern Ireland by
DMG Media (the parent company of the British ''
Daily Mail''). The paper launched in February 2006 with a launch strategy that included giving away free copies on the first day of circulation and low pricing subsequently. The 2009 price was one euro. The strategy aimed to attract readers away from the ''
Irish Independent''.
Associated Newspapers Ireland employs over 160 people in Ireland. Both the ''Irish Daily Mail'' and the ''Irish Mail on Sunday'', along with their magazines, ''YOU'' and ''TV Week'', are printed by Smurfit Kappa News Press in Kells and The Irish Times at
Citywest
Citywest ( ga, Iarthar na Cathrach) is a suburban development on the southwestern periphery of Dublin, originally developed as a "business campus." It contains a large hotel, with a convention centre, a small shopping centre and a small but e ...
, Dublin.
In July 2006 British media analyst
Roy Greenslade
Roy Greenslade (born 31 December 1946) is a British author and freelance journalist, and a former professor of journalism. He worked in the UK newspaper industry from the 1960s onwards. As a media commentator, he wrote a daily blog from 2006 to ...
explained falling sales of the ''Irish Daily Mail'': whereas the British version of the ''
Daily Mail'' acutely understands its readership, "None of that understanding of the culture, politics and genuine interests of the Irish people is evident in the pages of the Irish Daily Mail". By 2009 this policy had changed - the paper offered
Irish-language
Irish (Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was the ...
wallcharts for schoolchildren, and most of its coverage was about Irish subjects, though it is frequently scathing about politicians.
Irish columnists are contributing to the paper, with
Rónán Mullen
Rónán Thomas Mullen (born 13 October 1970) is an Irish senator and former delegate to the Council of Europe. He is the leader of the Human Dignity Alliance, an anti-abortion political party formed in 2018. He was elected by the National Un ...
's column, for example, in the ''Irish Daily Mail'' since May 2006.
Mary Ellen Synon, a former
''Sunday Independent'' columnist who had controversial views on
travellers,
asylum seekers and the
Paralympics is a regular contributor to the paper.
Mark Dooley
Mark Dooley (born 12 January 1970) is an Irish philosopher, writer and newspaper columnist. A specialist in continental philosophy, theology and the philosophy of religion, he is the author of several books, including ''The Politics of Exodus: ...
has also served as a columnist since 2006. His popular column "Moral Matters" appears on Wednesdays.
On 24 September 2006, ''
Ireland on Sunday
''Ireland on Sunday'' was a national Sunday newspaper published in Ireland from September 1997 until September 2006, when it was renamed the '' Irish Mail on Sunday''. The newspaper was founded in 1996 as a sports-only newspaper called ''The Titl ...
'', which had been purchased by Associated Newspapers in 2001, was
rebranded
Rebranding is a marketing strategy in which a new name, term, symbol, design, concept or combination thereof is created for an established brand with the intention of developing a new, differentiated identity in the minds of consumers, investors ...
as the ''Irish Mail on Sunday'', replacing the British edition of the ''
Mail on Sunday
''The Mail on Sunday'' is a British conservative newspaper, published in a tabloid format. It is the biggest-selling Sunday newspaper in the UK and was launched in 1982 by Lord Rothermere. Its sister paper, the ''Daily Mail'', was first pub ...
'' in the Irish market.
In February 2007
Fine Gael
Fine Gael (, ; English: "Family (or Tribe) of the Irish") is a liberal-conservative and Christian-democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil ...
leader
Enda Kenny
Enda Kenny (born 24 April 1951) is an Irish former Fine Gael politician who served as Taoiseach from 2011 to 2017, Leader of Fine Gael from 2002 to 2017, Minister for Defence from May to July 2014 and 2016 to 2017, Leader of the Opposition from ...
cited the ''Irish Daily Mail'' in the
Dáil regarding a front page which depicted a
CT scanner that lay idle in a laundry room.
In October 2012 an ''Irish Daily Mail'' team won an
NNI journalism award honour in the category "Best Design & Presentation". The jury commented: "There was attitude, colour cohesion and brilliant headline writing throughout."
[ ]
In March 2019 DMG Media Ireland – the group representing the ''Irish Daily Mail'', the ''Irish Mail on Sunday'',
Extra.ie and
Evoke.ie – proposed 35 redundancies, which would have brought staff numbers down to 121. In April 2019 compulsory redundancies were announced. 35 redundancies occurred by the end of April 2019.
In 2019, DMG Media Ireland acquired ''Rollercoaster'', an Irish website targeted at parents.
Circulation
Circulation of the Irish Daily Mail:
Controversies
The paper has faced criticism for attempting to transfer its traditional campaigns on topics such as the European Union and immigration and asylum from its domestic British market to Ireland. In Ireland, the EU and immigration were considered building blocks of Ireland's economic boom and as such did not raise the same furious reactions from readers as they do in Britain.
[Cristina Odon]
Has Dacre lost his Midas touch in Ireland?
''The Guardian'', 28 August 2006, accessed 5 September 2006 It regularly covered the
Lisbon Treaty
The Treaty of Lisbon (initially known as the Reform Treaty) is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed by the EU member sta ...
debate, opposing acceptance of the treaty leading up to the
referendum
A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
in June 2008.
The parent company ''Daily Mail'' in London also faced allegations in 1997 of
anti-Irish prejudice, and was reported to the
Press Complaints Commission
The Press Complaints Commission (PCC) was a voluntary regulatory body for British printed newspapers and magazines, consisting of representatives of the major publishers. The PCC closed on Monday 8 September 2014, and was replaced by the Inde ...
on these grounds by the non-governmental organisation the
Pat Finucane Centre
The Pat Finucane Centre (PFC) is a human rights advocacy and lobbying entity in Northern Ireland. Named in honour of murdered solicitor Pat Finucane, it operates advice centres in Derry and Newry, dealing mainly with complaints from Irish nati ...
.
In April 2009, it was pointed out by popular British science blog ''The Lay Scientist'' that while the ''Irish Daily Mail'' were campaigning for the reintroduction of the
HPV
Human papillomavirus infection (HPV infection) is caused by a DNA virus from the '' Papillomaviridae'' family. Many HPV infections cause no symptoms and 90% resolve spontaneously within two years. In some cases, an HPV infection persists and re ...
vaccine in Ireland, the ''Daily Mail'' in London were printing stories attacking the vaccine.
[The Daily Mail: Campaigning both For AND Against the HPV Vaccine in Different Countries Simultaneously](_blank)
''The Lay Scientist'', 13 April 2009, accessed 16 April 2009 The contradiction was condemned by many, including comedy writer
Graham Linehan
Graham Linehan () (born 22 May 1968) is an Irish television writer and anti-transgender activist. He created or co-created the sitcoms ''Father Ted'' (1995–1998), ''Black Books'' (2000–2004) and '' The IT Crowd'' (2006–2013). He has also ...
.
[Graham Lineha]
Jaw-dropping behaviour from The Daily Mail
14 April 2009, accessed 16 April 2009.
On 1 February 2011 it was announced that the ''
Sunday Tribune'' had gone into
receivership
In law, receivership is a situation in which an institution or enterprise is held by a receiver—a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights"—especially in c ...
, with fresh investment being sought by McStay Luby. The following day it was announced that there would be no further edition of the newspaper for four weeks. The last issue appeared on 30 January 2011. On 6 February 2011, the edition of the ''Irish Mail on Sunday'' had a cover similar in style to the ''Tribune'' The ''Irish Mail on Sunday'' was subsequently sued. The fake ''Mail on Sunday'' featured a "wraparound" cover with a heading saying "a special edition designed for readers of the ''Sunday Tribune''". The National Consumer Agency confirmed it was considering prosecuting the ''Irish Mail on Sunday'' for a breach of the Consumer Protection Act and the secretary of the National Union of Journalists, described the move by the paper as "crass and cynical" He added: “This was a cynical marketing exercise and represents a new low in Irish journalism. There can be no justification for the decision to reproduce the Sunday Tribune masthead instead of the Sunday Mail ’s own masthead.” The following July, the Mail paid "a six figure sum" to settle a legal action brought by the receiver for "passing off".
In July 2011, the newspaper refused to pass on the government's VAT reduction to its readers. Taoiseach
Enda Kenny
Enda Kenny (born 24 April 1951) is an Irish former Fine Gael politician who served as Taoiseach from 2011 to 2017, Leader of Fine Gael from 2002 to 2017, Minister for Defence from May to July 2014 and 2016 to 2017, Leader of the Opposition from ...
said that businesses to which the new lower VAT rate applied would be "failing Ireland" if they did not pass on the reduction. Labour TD
Aodhán Ó Ríordáin
Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (; born 22 July 1976) is an Irish Labour Party politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin Bay North constituency since the 2020 general election, and previously from 2011 to 2016 for the Dublin North-Ce ...
said: "I really think the Daily Mail's refusal to pass on the Government's VAT cut represents a real slap in the face to Irish consumers." It is estimated the ''Daily Mail'' will save approximately €750,000 as a result of this decision. The ''
Phoenix Magazine
Phoenix most often refers to:
* Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore
* Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States
Phoenix may also refer to:
Mythology
Greek mythological figures
* Phoenix (son of Amyntor), ...
'' noted however that the ''Irish Daily Mail'' "with a cover price of €1, the Mail is one
of the cheapest daily newspapers in the country and is 85c cheaper than the Indo
Irish_Independent''.html" ;"title="'
Irish Independent''">'
Irish Independent''. It also commented that Ó Ríordáin's wife, Aine Kerr, was a former political correspondent with the ''Irish Independent'', the paper's main rival who "was more than happy to print the story".
Days later a damning report from Britain's Information Commissioner found that the ''Irish Daily Mail'' was involved in the illegal trade of obtaining personal information on driving licences, criminal records, vehicle registration searches, reverse telephone traces and mobile-phone conversations.
References
{{Authority control
Newspapers published in Ireland
Publications established in 2006
Daily Mail and General Trust
2006 establishments in Ireland