The Caledonian Mercury, Scotland’s Award Winning Online Newspaper Re-Vamped

Just over two years after its launch, Scotland’s newest newspaper, The Caledonian Mercury is unveiling a sleek new redesign, plus weekly updates to core content and an invitation to readers to submit material to the site. The online news publication has already picked up major awards and an international following, both at home and Scots abroad. Now it has offered the following invitation:

“The Caledonian Mercury is committed to encouraging debate. We celebrate the voices of Scotland and want to encourage people to share their thoughts about our country. Submit your article to our editor. If he decides that it fits with the Caley Merc, we'll publish it and you will receive a linkback to your web presence.”

The redesigned site has changed in the following ways:
it looks cleaner, works better and loads faster.
A new navigation makes it easier for readers to find the stories they want.
The email newsletter now allows daily reminders to be set up.
Weekly scheduled content will now be posted on a Wednesday, although other content will appear through the week.

Stewart Kirkpatrick, the editor of The Caledonian Mercury, said: “The Caley Merc has evolved, and will continue to evolve. It is far from the finished product, very far from paying our journalists a decent amount, and very, very far from being the answer to the ills of the Scottish media. But we are still here and still trying, still experimenting and still determined to succeed.”

The Caledonian Mercury is also asking its readers to help it by:
Telling their friends: encouraging other people to read the Caley Merc - and share its pieces on social networking sites. Plus donations.

Kirkpatrick added: “With no paywalls or major advertisers, donations have been our lifeblood. Without those kind individuals who give us some of their hard-earned money, the site would have had to close more than a year ago. Thanks to them, however, its future is assured. We will shortly be unveiling a revamped donation scheme that offers donors a token of its gratitude.”

“Without our readers and our donors, we are nothing. And we need their help to keep our paper running. We are an independent publication, owned by the people who work for it. We have no rich backers. We are not owned by a large corporation. We are not a millionaire’s plaything. We have no major advertisers. Our only advantage is our relationship with our readers.”

About The Caledonian Mercury:
Founded on Burns Night, 25th January, 2010, the newspaper is part owned by the journalists who write for it, - all based in, and passionate about, Scotland. The Caledonian Mercury quickly tied with the Guardian Online as runner-up for the UK online newspaper of the year – UK Newspaper Society. Later that year, it won the title: Multimedia Publisher of the Year 2010.

The newspaper company is registered in Scotland, based in Edinburgh.
Contributors include leading Scottish freelancers: Hamish Macdonell, David Calder, Jennfier Trueland and Stewart Kirkpatrick.