ThaiDay newspaper to cease publication

BANGKOK: -- ThaiDay, an English-language daily owned by a leading critic of Thai caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, is to cease publication this week because of financial problems, executives confirmed Monday.

Sondhi Limthongkul, the newspaper's chairman, told ThaiDay staff that he would be forced to close down the Bangkok-based newspaper on Thursday because of political pressure on Thai banks to end his credit and similar pressure on companies not to place ads in the daily.

Sondhi, a maverick media tycoon who has been leading protests against Thaksin for the past eight months, added that he had sold ``a couple of my Porsches at a discount'' in an effort to keep the newspaper afloat.

ThaiDay, an offshoot of the Sondhi-owned Manager Media Group, has been distributed for the past 15 months as an insert in the International Herald Tribune for the Thai market.

The newspaper has taken a strong anti-Thaksin editorial stance, in keeping with Sondhi's political views.

The Herald Tribune, in a letter to subscribers in Thailand, confirmed that ThaiDay would cease to be inserted in its newspaper on Friday.

While ThaiDay may be folding, Herald Tribune marketing staff said the newspaper's circulation had increased significantly over the past 15 months, especially in Chiang Mai and Phuket.

Sondhi is no stranger to financial difficulties. His Manager Group launched the English-language Asia Times, a regional daily meant to rival the Herald Tribune, in the mid-1990s but was forced to cease its publication after the 1997 Asian financial crisis, which started in Bangkok.

--DPA 2006-08-28

More English content on his manage.co website wouldn't hurt.

I never noticed a 'strong anti-Thaksin' stance in ThaiDay (maybe I didn't read the editorials). Nevertheless I enjoyed the content, found it to be a cut above most journalism in the Post and the Nation. RIP ThaiDay ....

Newspapers in general will eventually meet the same fate. The internet is probably going to be the place to get news.

It is, however, to see one end because of political pressure.

Newspapers in general will eventually meet the same fate. The internet is probably going to be the place to get news.

Cable TV, too.

No, people still like to read a real paper they can hold. It's part of a lifestyle. It doesn't matter in the end - paper is just a medium of delivery from the same news source. They might plug in more advertising into internet editions to cover the costs.