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 De Standaard front page on 7 May 2025 | |
| Type | Daily newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Compact |
| Owner | Mediahuis |
| Editor | Bart Sturtewagen Karel Verhoeven |
| Founded | 1918; 107 years ago (1918) |
| Language | Dutch |
| Headquarters | Kantersteen 47, 1000City of Brussels, Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium |
| Circulation | 98,000 (2009) |
| Sister newspapers | Het Nieuwsblad |
| Website | www |
De Standaard (Dutch pronunciation:[dəˈstɑndaːrt],lit. 'The Standard') is aFlemish dailynewspaper published inBelgium byMediahuis (formerly Corelio and VUM). It was traditionally aChristian-Democratic paper, associated with theChristian-Democratic and Flemish Party, and in opposition to theSocialist Flemish dailyDe Morgen. In recent yearsDe Standaard has renounced its original ideological ties.
In 1911,Frans Van Cauwelaert foundedOns Volk Ontwaakt, the weekly journal of the Flemish Catholic student organization.
In 1914, Van Cauwelaert, Alfons Van de Perre, and Arnold Hendrix formed a publishing company,De Standaard N.V. ("The Standard, Incorporated": the Standard Group).[citation needed] Their goal was to publish a conservative,Catholic, Flemish daily newspaper inBrussels, to be calledDe Standaard. The motto ofDe Standaard wasAlles voor Vlaanderen - Vlaanderen voor Kristus ("Everything for Flanders - Flanders for Christ"), abbreviatedAVV-VVK.AVV-VVK appeared inDe Standaard's front-page banner until 1999. The first edition was to appear on 22 November 1914, but publication was cancelled due to the outbreak ofWorld War I.De Standaard did not appear until 4 December 1918,[1] after the war ended.Gustave Sap, who joined the board of directors in 1919, provided the necessary capital for its initial expansion.[citation needed] The paper was started as aconservative daily withCatholic values.[2]
In 1940, during theSecond World War, Belgium was occupied byNazi Germany.De Standaard again ceased publication. However, a newpaper,Het Algemeen Nieuws ("The General News") was published withDe Standaard's staff and presses,[citation needed] printing only what the Nazi occupation government permitted. After the liberation of Belgium in 1944, the management of Standard Group was accused ofcollaboration with the Nazi occupiers, and the company was banned for two years. A new company was therefore created:De Gids N.V. ("The Guide, Inc."), which began publishingDe Nieuwe Standaard ("The New Standard") in November 1944. Older titles of the Standaard group were also continued by De Gids.[citation needed]
In 1947, the ban on Standard Group was removed, and with court permission the company reclaimed all its titles.De Nieuwe Standaard was immediately renamedDe Nieuwe Gids, and then, as of 1 May,De Standaard again.
In the 1960s and 1970s,De Standaard was famous for its high-quality and independent foreign affairs coverage. For example, despite its Catholic and conservative ties,[3]De Standaard was critical ofAmerican policy in southeast Asia.
However, the financial condition of Standard Group deteriorated, becoming critical in 1976. Standard Group declared bankruptcy on 22 June.De Standaard was rescued byAndré Leysen, a Belgian businessman, who formedVlaamse Uitgeversmaatschappij N.V. (VUM - "Flemish Publishers Partnership"). VUM took over Standard Group's titles, and became the publisher ofDe Standaard. VUM changed its name to Corelio in 2006. The sister newspaper ofDe Standaard isHet Nieuwsblad.[3]
Since 30 September 1999 the newspaper has stopped printing the lettercross AVV-VVK on its frontpage.[4] In March 2004,De Standaard changed its format from traditionalbroadsheet tocompact format.[5] Unlike common practice for most of the newspapers this change occurred during its modernization process, not as a response to low circulation levels.[5]
On 9 January 2017De Standaard fired its controversial columnist,Dyab Abou Jahjah, after the latter made comments onTwitter that condoned the2017 Jerusalem truck attack.[6]
In 2002De Standaard had a circulation of 98,169 copies.[7] The circulation of the paper was also reported to be 93,500 copies in 2002.[8] The paper had a circulation of 79,000 copies in 2003[9] and 81,000 copies in 2004.[10]
The circulation of the paper was 102,280 copies in 2007.[11] During the first quarter of 2009 the paper had a circulation of 107,888 copies.[12] In 2009 its paid circulation was about 98,000 copies.[13]
Media related toDe Standaard (newspaper) at Wikimedia Commons
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