Publishing
Daily Newspapers * Express & Star * Shropshire StarWeekly Newspapers * Bridgnorth Journal * Cannock Chronicle * Dudley Chronicle * Halesowen Chronicle * Market Drayton Advertiser * Mid Wales Journal * Newport Advertiser * Sandwell Chronicle * South Shropshire Journal * Stourbridge Chronicle * Telford Journal * Walsall Chronicle * Shrewsbury Chronicle * Wolverhampton Chronicle Magazines * Shropshire Magazine As of 2020, editions of the weekly newspapers are delivered free to subscribers of the online page turning edition of the Shropshire Star or Express and Star. Previously many weekly papers were delivered to every home.History
The history of the MNA can be traced back more than 130 years to a partnership between two men, including an ancestor of the Graham family who still own the newspapers today. Scottish-American millionaire Andrew Carnegie founded the '' Express & Star'' in Wolverhampton in the 1880s along with a group of radical Liberal Party members, including Thomas Graham. Carnegie’s aim was to campaign, through a string of regional daily newspapers, for the creation of a British Republic. His dream was to sack the monarchy, scrap the House of Lords and destroy every vestige of privilege in the land. By 1902 Carnegie had abandoned his mission and the newspaper has been owned by the Graham family ever since.Early growth
At least 28 newspapers have been published in Wolverhampton over the past century but the ''Express & Star'' remains the market leader. Among those to be seen off were the Evening News, which closed in July 1915. During the First World War, the ''Express & Star'' raised its price to a penny due to the price of paper, with a promise to revert to a halfpenny when hostilities ended. By 1918, it had a staff of 100, including one delivery van and one driver. The Graham family took a wider view of the newspaper industry, with Malcolm Graham – the current owner's late father – spending part of his twenties on newspapers in Canada, where he learnt from the slick "New World" style of journalism. On his return, he applied to the ''Express & Star'' the more modern approach he had seen first hand. By the 1930s, the circulation was more than 100,000 and the paper was part of a newspaper war which saw readers offered all manners of inducement to boost sales, such as tea-sets and holiday tokens. During the Second World War, newsprint restrictions meant the size of the paper was reduced by half. In response to the shortage, the design moved from broadsheet to tabloid. A comforts fund organised by the paper raised £160,000 over the course of the war, while the paper also became the first to sponsor a Spitfire collection fund.1950s to 1970s
The post-war period saw the company compete with new innovations such as television yet still push up sales by an average of 1,120 a year. Despite a national print dispute in 1959, the circulation rose to 201,594 copies a day. Until 1963, the MNA published the ''Express & Star'', ''Wolverhampton Chronicle'' plus the Saturday football paper, all set in a conventional1980s to present day
In the 1980s the MNA paved the way for the computer revolution in the British newspaper industry and has remained in the forefront of publishing technology. The ''Express & Star'' is firmly established the biggest-selling regional evening newspaper in Britain, while the ''Shropshire Star'' remains the fifth biggest, comfortably outselling metropolitan titles like the '' Birmingham Mail''. The MNA continues to provide same-day news, with local editions for many communities. With innovations in areas such as iPad Apps and digital newspaper technology, it continues to be at the forefront of regional news more than 130 years after the Carnegie-Graham partnership. In December 2012 Midland News Association also launched its own recruitment agency, Star Employment Services, which operates from MNA’s headquarters in Queen Street, Wolverhampton.MNA Digital
MNA Digital is the online branch of Midland News Association, being responsible for developing the websites expressandstar.com and shropshirestar.com and associated newspaper apps for iPad, iPhone,See also
*'' Shrewsbury Chronicle'' *'' North Shropshire Chronicle''References
External links