The media in Wales provide services in both English and Welsh, and play a role in modern Welsh culture. BBC Cymru Wales began broadcasting in 1923 have helped to promote a form of standardised spoken Welsh,Davies (2008) p. 87 and one historian has argued that the concept of Wales as a single national entity owes much to modern broadcasting.Davies, J. (1994) Broadcasting and the BBC in Wales. Cardiff: University of Wales Press. The national broadcasters are based in the capital, Cardiff.
Newspapers and news magazines
History of newspapers in Wales
The initial growth of newspaper publishing in Wales was slow in comparison to that of urban England, mainly due to distribution problems caused by poor transport networks and in particular rail links.Davies (2008) p. 615 It was further hindered by taxes on paper, advertising and the newspapers themselves. This changed in the early 19th century when Wales experienced sweeping social changes due to the Industrial Revolution. A rapid surge in population growth, along with the adoption of radacalist political views and the growth of Nonconformity saw the development of newspaper publishing in Wales. However the market for newspapers in Wales was much smaller than in England and was also to some extent split between two languages.
The first weekly newspaper in Wales was The Cambrian, published in 1804 and based in Swansea. Printed only in the English language, it was initially restricted to circulation in the southern towns of Wales, but over time its distribution increased, reaching not just South Wales, but also the West of England, America, India and the British colonies. The newspaper mainly covered local and general news, but also advocated mining, agricultural, and commercial interests. The success of The Cambrian was followed by other weeklies, including the North Wales Gazette (Bangor, 1808) and the Carmarthen Journal (Carmarthen, 1910). The first Welsh-language weekly, Seren Gomer, was founded by Joseph Harris (Gomer) in Swansea in 1814. It covered national, foreign, political and religious news, and also included literary contributions from notable Welsh Nonconformists. Although it had a considerable circulation, the tax on paper made the Seren Gomer unviable, and it stopped after 85 issues. It was relaunched as a fortnightly in 1818 and then a monthly in 1820.
Few newspapers were established in Wales in the 1820s and 1830s. Both the Cardiff Weekly Reporter and the Newport Review were launched in Cardiff in 1822, and in 1836 the Welsh-language weekly Cronicl yr Oes (The Chronicle of the Age) began distributing from Mold in North Wales. 1836 also saw the printing of a West Wales paper, the Cambrian Gazette: Y Freinlen Gymroaidd ("The Welshmen's Charter"), based in Aberystwyth. All four were short lived. More successful papers from that period included the Monmouthshire Merlin (Newport, 1829–91) and The Welshman (1832-1984). In 1843, Yr Amserau (The Times), which was to become the first successful Welsh-language newspaper, was launched. Established across the border in Liverpool by Gwilym Hiraethog, it was later bought by Thomas Gee of Denbigh in 1859 and amalgamated with Baner Cymru (The Banner of Wales) (1857) to form Baner ac Amserau Cymru.Davies (2008) p. 616 This became a powerful influence on Welsh life, and through its most notable contributor John Griffith, writing under his pen name Y Gohebydd (The Correspondent), the paper would champion radical causes, including the defence of Nonconformist views. In Wrexham, two monthly newspapers were established in 1848, the Wrexham Recorder and the Wrexham Registrar, although both shut down the following year. In 1854 George Bayley established the Wrexham Advertiser, a weekly newspaper that remained active for several decades.
When stamp duty on newspapers was abolished in 1855, the effect was a rise in the number of publications, and most of the denominational papers in Wales originated around this period. The Baptist Seren Cymru (Star of Wales) launched in Carmarthen 1851, but had a short run followed by a more successful launch when it re-established in 1856. This was followed by the Congregationalists' Y Tyst Cymreig (The Welsh Witness) (1867), the Calvinistic Methodists' Y Goleuad (The Illuminator) (1869), the Wesleyans' Y Gwyliedydd (The Sentinel) (1877) and the Anglican Y Llan a'r Dywysogaeth (The Parish and Principality) (1881). These religious papers were published nationally and reported on home and wider British news, though they also gave leadership on political and social issues.
Outside of Cardiff and Swansea, two other towns in the south Wales, Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare, developed as newspaper publishing hubs in the mid- to late 19th century. Josiah Thomas Jones of Aberdare launched both Y Gwron Cymreig ("The Welsh Hero", 1854–60) and The Aberdare Times (1861-1902), while David Williams (Alaw Goch), Abraham Mason and William Williams (Carw Goch) also of Aberdare, published Y Gwladgarwr ("The Patriot", 1858–82). The most important of these newspapers was Tarian y Gweithiwr ("The Workers' Shield"), which had a strong Liberal-Labour bias and stood for workers' rights; this made it popular with the coal miners and tinplate workers of the region. Merthyr Tydfil in turn was home to The Cardiff and Merthyr Guardian (1832–74), The Merthyr Star (1859-1881), Y Fellten ("The Lightning Flash", 1868–76), and two Chartist publications The Workman and Udgorn Cymru ("The Trumpet of Wales").
In the north, Bangor and Caernarfon rose as important print towns. The North Wales Gazette was first published in Bangor in 1808 before changing title to the North Wales Chronicle in 1827. In direct conflict was the Carnarvon and Denbigh Herald, whose editorials were Liberal and Nonconformist, in contrast with the support of the Chronicle for Toryism and the Established Church.
Modern national newspapers Unlike Scotland and Northern Ireland, the Welsh national press is limited. The only English-language Wales-based national newspapers are the Western Mail, produced by Reach plc and The National produced by Newsquest. The Western Mail's Sunday counterpart is the Wales on Sunday. +Circulation rank for Welsh published national newspapers, 2012-2019RankNewspaperCirculation (2019)1The Western Mail12,000 One study in the 1990s found that the most widely read newspaper in Wales was The Sun.Mackay, H. and Powell, A. (1997) "Wales and its Media. Production, Consumption and Regulation". Contemporary Wales vol. 9, pp. 8-39. Despite the popularity of London-based newspapers in Wales, most UK newspapers do not produce regional editions for the Welsh audience, although until 2003 The Mirror was branded as the Welsh Mirror. Since the 1970s, there has been a decline in the number of Fleet Street newspaper journalists based in Wales; now all national UK newspapers rely on the Press Association reporter in Wales.Williams, K. (2000) "No Dreads, only Some Doubts: The Press and the Referendum Campaign" in Barry Jones, J. and Balsom, D. (eds) The Road to the National Assembly for Wales. Cardiff: University of Wales Press.
Modern regional newspapers
Daily newspapers The most popular local newspapers in Wales, as of 2018, are the Daily Post, the Swansea-based South Wales Evening Post, the Cardiff-based South Wales Echo and Western Mail, and the Newport-based South Wales Argus. The North Wales edition of the Liverpool Daily Post is distributed in that region. The Evening Leader is the main evening newspaper for North East Wales. +Circulation rank for Welsh daily newspapers, 2024RankNewspaperCirculation (2019)Region populationReach percentage1Daily Post8350687,9372South Wales Evening Post5471573,6003The Western Mail52711,481,5704South Wales Echo45741,481,5705South Wales Argus3623337,400
Weekly newspapers
Y Cymro ("The Welshman", Welsh pronunciation: [ə ˈkəmrɔ]) was Wales' last Welsh language weekly newspaper, first published in 1932. By the time of its cessation in 2017 its sales had dwindled to around 2,000 copies. It now shares content through social media and has applied for funding from the Welsh Books Council for the resumption of physical publication. +Circulation rank for Welsh weekly newspapers, 2012-2019RankNewspaper1Western Telegraph2Wales on Sunday3Carmarthen Journal4Llanelli Star5Glamorgan Gazette6Tivyside Advertiser7Cynon Valley Leader8North Wales Weekly News9South Wales Guardian10Monmouth Free Press11Caernarfon & Denbigh Herald12Barry & District13Merthyr Express14Rhondda Leader15Pontypridd Observer16Gwent Gazette17Abergavenny Chronicle
Literature
Publishers There are a number of large, medium, and small-sized publishing houses across Wales; however, the industry has seen contraction in recent years. The Wales Books Council states that there are 109 publishers in Wales. Funding for literature in Wales is dominated by the Welsh Books Council in Cardiff and Literature Wales in Aberystwyth.
Gomer Press is the largest and oldest publisher of English and Welsh language books in Wales, established in 1892. It is based in Llandysul and publishes around 120 titles a year. In September 2019 it was announced Gomer would be closing their publishing arm to focus on printing. Its 55 employees will be retained but will no longer publish new titles, of which it produced 36 in 2018. It marked the end of 127 years of publishing. Publish & Print is a publisher based in Pontypridd, founded in 2014 by the Welsh writer Dave Lewis. Accent Press is a publisher based in Mountain Ash and Cardiff, founded in 2003 by Hazel Cushion. Parthian Books are Cardigan-based publishers, established in 1994 by Richard Lewis Davies and Gillian Griffiths. Seren is a Bridgend-based independent publisher, established in 1988. They are a subsidiary of Poetry Wales Press Ltd. Dref Wen is a Cardiff-based publisher, established in 1998, specialising in children's books written in both English and Welsh. Welsh Academic Press is a publishing house established in 1994 focused on historical and political non-fiction. Their imprint St David's Press focuses on leisure, sport, and history. Crown House Publishing is a Carmarthen-based publishing company established in 1998. It specialises in literature about education, coaching, NLP, hypnosis, self-help and personal development Graffeg is a publisher founded in 2003 by Peter Gill specialising in illustrated children's and non-fiction books. Deadstar Publishing is a graphic novel publisher based in Cardiff and established in 2011. University of Wales Press was established in 1922 and publishes 50 to 70 new titles each year. Their work focuses on the humanities, arts, and social sciences.
Modern magazines Around Town is a free lifestyle and events magazine which publishes four variant editions that serve Bridgend, Cardiff, Swansea and Rhondda Cynon Taff.
Golwg ("View"; Welsh pronunciation: [ˈɡɔlʊk]) is a Welsh-language magazine established in 1988. It covers current events and features and claims a monthly circulation of 12,000, the largest circulation of any magazine in Wales.
Cambria, which referred to itself as the 'National Magazine of Wales', was first launched in 1997 and was published bi-monthly. A glossy publication covering the arts, current affairs, topical subjects, history and lifestyle, it was aimed at ABC1 readers. It faced closure in 2015 after losing its funding from the Welsh Books Council, but was temporarily saved after a newly formed company, MegaGroup Newspapers, bought a half share in the publication. It printed its final issue in 2016 and MegaGroup was made insolvent in 2017.
Planet, a bi-monthly magazine covering the arts, literature and politics in Wales and the wider world, is produced in Aberystwyth. Each edition features poems and short stories alongside cultural reviews and political analysis.