Paper Monitor
10:47 UK time, Thursday, 28 February 2008
A service highlighting the riches of the daily press.
Latest despatch from the hessian frontline…
After yesterday's unilateral declaration of war on the plastic bag from the Daily Mail, the Daily Telegraph is piling in with reinforcement troops today in the shape of its own "Free eco-friendly bag for every reader" offer.
Exactly how this will sit alongside the rival Mail's free eco bag offer is unclear and fears are growing of a "blue on blue", or should that be "green on green", situation.
Nevertheless, the support of the former colonial power that is the Telegraph will add credibility to the agenda of the brash and strident tabloid superpower that has led the charge, and clearly shows a growing resolve in the right-of-centre camp around this issue.
However, after yesterday's surprise nine-page strike by the Mail on the rogue republic of Plastic Bagistan, questions are being raised about its long-term commitment to regime change… by Thursday it had scaled back its forces to just seven pages.
An indication of wavering commitment? Or perhaps a belief that with Marks and Spencer's capitulation - it has announced it is to start charging for plastic bags - the Mail's shock and awe campaign has set in chain a rebellion from within. Are we witnessing the first of several casualties in the fabled ?
Who will be next to fall? Tesco, Sainsbury's, er, Budgens…
In tandem with this military assault, the Mail has thrown its might behind a hearts and minds campaign. It is a tactic which reveals the paper will stop at nothing to make its point… even employing techniques pioneered by its reviled ideological foes at the Guardian and the Independent. Yes, the paper is offering all readers an "educational wildlife wall-chart" dominated by a picture of a dolphin.
With events moving at such a pace there's no telling where or when it will end, but senior sources in the besieged capital of Polythenia fear they could be ousted and exiled to a sympathetic landfill by the weekend.
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