Media in Townsville

Townsville is the media centre for North Queensland, with 4 commercial radio stations, North Queensland ABC radio station and Townsville Rocks online radio station, 3 commercial television stations, one regional daily newspaper and one community weekly newspaper (both owned by News Ltd). There are no local Sunday papers although the Sunday Mail (based in Brisbane) does a North Queensland edition, which is printed and distributed from Townsville (throughout Northern Queensland). Townsville also has extensive outdoor and indoor advertising mediums, ranging from taxi advertising to large format billboards.

Print media

The Townsville Bulletin is the dominant newspaper in North Queensland with daily coverage on local, state, national and world news, plus a wide range of sections and lift outs covering health, real estate, youth, beauty, cars and lifestyle. The Bulletin has a $1.20 cover price on weekdays, increasing to $1.80 for the weekend edition, and is in tabloid format. In 2006 the Bulletin had a readership (average) Monday to Friday of 84 000 (up 15.5% on 2005) and weekend readership (avg) of 104,000 (up 1.96% on 2005)^[1] and circulation (avg) of 27 187 Monday to Friday, weekend circulation (avg) of 41 814.^[2] The Townsville Bulletin is owned by News Limited, a subsidiary of News Corporation and employs over 100 people.

The Sun Community Newspaper is a free publication distributed weekly to 55,113 homes in the urban and rural suburbs of Townsville.^[3] It is published by News Limited. Previously called the Twin Cities Advertiser, it was split into The Townsville Sun and The Thuringowa Sun, but after a few years The Thuringowa Sun merged with the Townsville Sun to form The Sun newspaper of today.^[4]

DUO Magazine (now in its ninth year of publication) is a complimentary lifestyle magazine published monthly for men and women aged 25–54 years. DUO is the region's most popular magazine with 45,000+ readers of the printed edition and 33,000+ online readers. 12,000 copies of DUO are distributed to over 400 outlets throughout Townsville, Ingham, Ayr, Charters Towers, and Mt Isa and is carried on all Alliance Airlines flights to the major mines. It is also available from the Qantas Club at Townsville Airport.

Success Business Magazine is a quarterly corporate magazine that is distributed free to locals (10,000 copies and a readership exceeding 25,000) in Townsville City, Ayr, Burdekin, and Charters Towers. It is targeted at business people, both male and female aged between 25-55 years. Success Business Magazine is a glossy magazine that features local businesses through to national brands. It is also distributed at various businesses throughout the North Queensland region such as hotels, coffee shops and shopping centres among many others.

Magnetic Island has two competing small publications – Magnetic Island Community News is printed weekly and Magnetic Times is published online.

The North Queensland Register is based in Townsville. However, it services the Queensland rural community from Rockhampton North. Owned by Rural Press Limited it has a distribution of about 5,000.

Northern Services Courier is an independent newspaper for Defence Force personnel stationed in Townsville.

The Hack (formerly known as The Bullsheet) is the student community newspaper at James Cook University, published by the JCU Student Association. Outlook is the academic community newspaper at James Cook University and it is published by the University.

Broadcast centre for 4TO, Hot FM, Mix 106.3 and Sea FM

THE PLACE street press is a free, monthly tabloid size newspaper targeted at the music, arts and entertainment markets. The main readership demograpchic is 16 - 35yo's. 10,000 copies are distributed to hotels, retail, cafes, venues and many other locations through Townsville, Ayr, Magnetic Is, Ingham, Home Hill and Airlie Beach.

Printing companies

• Digital Business Technology
• Xerox
• Think Office Technology
• Kwik Kopy

Radio

Television

Seven Queensland and WIN Television produce half-hour local news bulletins for the area on weeknights, both produced from newsrooms in the city and broadcast from studios in Maroochydore. Southern Cross Nine provides short local news updates, presented from studios in Canberra.

National and international news bulletins are shown on each respective network in place of or following local news - four are produced in Brisbane, with a Queensland focus (ABC, Seven, Nine and Ten). Network Ten in Brisbane also has a North Queensland reporter based in Townsville, covering roughly from the tip of Cape York South to Mackay.

New channels broadcast by all the networks in addition to the ones listed above are available on the digital service called Freeview Australia to viewers in Townsville and the surrounding region. These channels include ABC2, ABC3, ABC News 24, SBS Two, One, Eleven, 7Two, 7mate, 9Gem and 9Go!.

Pay TV

Internet

Currently the only major local producer of online journalism is ABC North Queensland. CityLife Magazine reproduces their full content online. The Townsville Bulletin publishes a small quantity of its content on the internet and WIN Television publish local news headlines online. There is also one specialty (Magnetic Island) news website called Magnetic Times. It is run by chief operating officer Jamie Cunningham. Blogging Townsville provides regular critique and commentary on local media and issues of local and national interest.

References