News Limited will put paper boys back on the beat on Monday as the publisher attempts to spoil the first day of Fairfax Media’s relaunch of The Age and Sydney Morning Herald as compacts.
News Limited will also increase the size of its tabloids in Sydney and Melbourne – The Daily Telegraph and Herald Sun – by 20 pages above normal.
News Limited confirmed to Mumbrella that it will be deploying distribution staff across the city at major train stations across Sydney and Melbourne to sell its newspapers. “Yes, there will be some distribution staff with papers at railway stations next week,” said a News Limited spokesman.
“The papers will be the appropriate size for the news agenda on Monday, as they always are.”
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Mumbrella understands the Herald Sun will also announce the appointment of former Treasurer Peter Costello on Monday as a regular columnist with the newspaper. The former federal deputy Liberal Party leader departed Fairfax two weeks ago after the company told him his columns would only appear monthly and not fortnightly.
Both Costello and the Herald Weekly Times did not return requests by Mumbrella to confirm the appointment.
Sydney’s Daily Telegraph has also revealed the appointment of fortmer player Peter “Sterlo” Sterling as a new rugby league commentator.
Yesterday Mumbrella revealed that the Herald Sun is set to bring forward three weeks one of its highest selling editions with Mike Sheahan’s Top 50 to this Monday.
It is now understood that Sheahan has himself confirmed this on Fox Sport’s AFL program AFL360.
Nic Christensen