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.png) The front page ofRzeczpospolita on 8 April 2013 | |
| Format | Compact |
|---|---|
| Owner | Gremi Media SA |
| Editor | Bogusław Chrabota |
| Founded | 1920 (revived in 1944 and 1982) |
| Language | Polish |
| Headquarters | Warsaw |
| Circulation | 24,000 (2025) |
| Sister newspapers | Parkiet |
| ISSN | 0208-9130 |
| OCLC number | 264077858 |
| Website | www |
Rzeczpospolita (Polish pronunciation:[ʐɛt͡ʂpɔsˈpɔlita]ⓘ) is a Polish nationwide daily economic and legal newspaper, published by Gremi Media.[1] Established in 1920,Rzeczpospolita was originally founded as a daily newspaper of the conservative Christian National Party duringinterwar Poland. The paper's title is a translation of the Latin phraseres publica (meaning "republic", or "commonwealth"), and is part of the traditional and official name of the Polish state, "Rzeczpospolita Polska."
The newspaper came under government control during thePolish People's Republic (1945–1989). Following the1989 political revolutions across Europe, the new democratically-elected government relinquished its editorial oversight and ownership ofRzeczpospolita, contributing to the end ofmedia censorship in communist Poland and ushering in a new era of independent press.
In 2016,Rzeczpospolita had a circulation of 274,000; 75% of its readers were reported to have higher education.[2]Rzeczpospolita is among the most frequently cited media sources in the country and is considered anewspaper of record for Poland.[3]
The paper was founded byIgnacy Jan Paderewski and the first issue was published on 15 June 1920. Paderewski sold the paper in 1924 toWojciech Korfanty, another prominent politician of that time.[4] The editor-in-chiefStanisław Stroński sought to maintain the quality of the content by cooperating with a group of authors, including Adolf Nowaczyński,Kornel Makuszyński, andWładysław Witwicki. The last issue ofRzeczpospolita in the Second Polish Republic was published on the last day of 1931.[5]
During World War II (1940–1943), an irregular paper associated with a Polish resistance group Polish People's Independence Action was issued under the same title.
On 23 July 1944, when the war had not yet ended, the first issue ofRzeczpospolita, a newspaper of thePolish Committee of National Liberation, was published inChełm. The editor-in-chief wasJerzy Borejsza,[5] a communist activist and journalist during the interwar years, who collaborated with Russians, and later presented opinions in line with the Kremlin. The newspaper began strenuous endeavours to form a positive image of the new government. TheHome Army commanders and their decision to commence theWarsaw Uprising were criticised, whilenationalisation andland reform were supported.
After the war,Rzeczpospolita was issued by a cooperative publishing house Czytelnik whose president was Borejsza himself. He delegated the editorial duties to Paweł Hoffman, who soon changed the title toRzeczpospolita. Dziennik Gospodarczy (The Economic Daily), and later toRzeczpospolita. Dziennik Polityczno-Gospodarczy (The Economic and Political Daily). In 1949, with a new chief editor Henryk Korotyński, the paper joined the campaign against the Roman Catholic Church.
In December 1948, the state authorities had established another newspaperTrybuna Ludu (People's Tribune), an organ of a newly formed political party, thePolish United Workers' Party.[6]Rzeczpospolita had been issued by another two years, until 1951 when it was discontinued because the coexistence of several party newspapers was considered unfavorable for a consolidatedone-party state. A part of the team joinedGłos Pracy, while others including Korotyński moved toŻycie Warszawy.
In 1980, the state had faced a crisis, and consequently the party's overall image deteriorated significantly. This prompted the idea to relaunch a separate government newspaper. In the spring of 1981, thus during the rise ofSolidarity,Edmund Osmańczyk, member of parliament of thePolish People's Republic, proposed to reviveRzeczpospolita as a "governmental medium presenting the position of the state on a daily basis". Józef Barecki, former editor ofTrybuna Ludu, a member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and of the parliament, as well as a government spokesman for a year, was appointed as the editor-in-chief. The first issue of the newRzeczpospolita appeared during martial law, on 14 January 1982.
The state, as an entity, had become officially independent from the party (even though this independence was still largely fictitious within a communist state). Thus, from 1982 onwards,Rzeczpospolita andTrybuna Ludu resumed their parallel existence as the official bulletins of the government and the party apparatus respectively. This dualism corresponded to the situation in the Soviet Union, where the government newspaperIzvestia functioned alongside the party'sPravda, and where Izvestia has steered a course strikingly similar toRzeczpospolita in the 1990s.
After, the partially free elections of 4 June 1989, and afterTadeusz Mazowiecki became Prime Minister, the management of the newspaper changed as well.Rzeczpospolita was no longer a government medium, and became an independent newspaper. Its new editor-in-chief was Dariusz Fikus (until 1996).
The new Polish government madeRzeczpospolita legitimately independent. In February 1991, Państwowe Przedsiębiorstwo Wydawnicze "Rzeczpospolita", a state publishing company, with Maciej Cegłowski as the new CEO, together with the French Robert Hersant press group, Presse Participations Europennes, established Presspublica company. Its first CEO was the then editor-in-chief ofRzeczpospolita, Dariusz Fikus. Initially, the Polish shareholder held 51% of company shares, while the French owned 49%. In 1993,Rzeczpospolita was named the Newspaper of the Year by the Pheidippides Committee.
In the mid-1990s, the Polish party sold the additional 2% of shares to the French. In 1996, theNorwegianOrkla Media corporation acquired shares held by the Robert Hersant group. During the next 10 years, 51% of shares were held by the subsidiary of Orkla Press Polska, Presspublica Holding Norway, while 49% belonged to Państwowe Przedsiębiorstwo Wydawnicze "Rzeczpospolita" (from 1 March 2000, to Przedsiębiorstwo Wydawnicze "Rzeczpospolita" SA). In October 2006, the shares of Orkla Press Polska were taken over by Mecom Poland Holdings SA forming part of the British Mecom Group.
In October 2011, Gremi Media, owned by the Polish entrepreneurGrzegorz Hajdarowicz, purchased the shares from Mecom Poland[7] and the shares belonging to PW Rzeczpospolita (the State Treasury), becoming a 100% shareholder of Presspublica publishing house. The publishing house changed its name to Gremi Media, after which, in January 2017, it was transformed into a joint stock company operating under the business name of Gremi Media SA.
The basic edition ofRzeczpospolita is divided into four sections: the main one, dedicated to general news; the economic one (Ekonomia i rynek), the legal one (Prawo co dnia); and the regional one (Życie Regionów).
The general news section features, e.g., information on current political events, reports from Poland and abroad, commentaries and essays, expert opinions, as well as news relating to culture, science, lifestyle, or sports.Prawo co dnia ("Law Every Day") focuses on the changes in regulations and legislation and on legal analyses, including articles on labour law, analyses and expert opinions, or industry-related communications.Ekonomia i rynek ("Economy and Market") provides information about markets, enterprises, finance, current stock quotes, analyses of the economic situation and trends in Poland and abroad, as well as opinions of economists, experts and representatives of the business world.
The nationwide issue of the newspaper includes a series of regional monthly supplements entitledŻycie Regionów ("Life of the Regions"). They are dedicated to important investments, business and education in the regions, as well as matters related to local politics, sports, and culture.Życie Regionów is the organiser of public debates that are crucial for local communities, as well as the media partner of major regional events.
On Saturdays,Plus Minus, the weekend edition ofRzeczpospolita, appears, containing articles related to civilisation, literature, lifestyle andmetapolitics. It mainly includes essays, commentaries and feature articles, as well as reviews of books and cultural and sporting events. Interviews form a particularly important part ofPlus Minus.
Newspaper subscription includes such specialised supplements asPodatki (taxes),Administracja (administration),Rzecz o prawie (law),Ekspert Księgowego (accounting),Praca i ZUS (labour and social security matters), orPrawo w Biznesie (law in business).
Dobra Firma ("Good Company") is a daily supplement to the main issue. It is primarily addressed to entrepreneurs from the SME sector. In an easy-to-understand manner, it covers both the legal issues relevant to business owners (taxes, social security, contracts, employment), and business matters (marketing of new products, business ideas, available solutions relating to company vehicles).
Nieruchomości ("Real Estate") appears on Mondays and Fridays. On Mondays, topics relating to construction and housing are presented, while on Fridays, matters related to the commercial real estate market are covered.
Every Tuesday,Rzeczpospolita Cyfrowa ("Digital Republic") is issued withRzeczpospolita, dedicated to new technologies, with particular focus on their application in running a business and in developing new business branches.
Moje Pieniądze ("My Money") is a Thursday supplement devoted to personal finance. It offers tips on saving and investing money, buying shares and choosing insurance.
The Friday supplement isRzecz o Historii ("The thing about History"), offering informative articles and historical analysis.
Regular publications ofRzeczpospolita include lists and rankings of companies, brands and institutions operating on the Polish market. The best known are: the 500 List, the 2000 List, the Ranking of the Most Valuable Polish Brands, and the Ranking of Law Firms.
The list of the largest Polish companies by revenue, first published in 1999. Modelled on theFortune list, it is now the only such ranking in Poland. The best developing companies on the list receive the prestigiousRzeczpospolita Eagles awards.
The list of the best companies according toRzeczpospolita, first published in 2002. It takes into account their revenues, employment, and results. The ranking of the largest exporters is published as a supplement. Outstanding enterprises from the list receive the Good Company, Exports Eagle and Exports Brand awards.
The Ranking of the Most Valuable Polish Brands provides a professional valuation of over 300 brands created specifically for the needs of the Polish market. Apart from value, the strength of brands in separate industry categories is also estimated. The ranking has been published since 2003.
The ranking includes law firms servicing enterprises and operating on the Polish market. Law firms are broken down, among others, in terms of the number of lawyers and legal counsels, the generated revenues and profits, the servicing of the leading market transactions, or the best lawyers in respective areas of law. The ranking has been published since 2003.
Until 2007,Rzeczpospolita was published in the classic broadsheet format. The format then changed to compact, a modern and more functional one.[citation needed]
In 2005, the newspaper received the Grand Front award[citation needed], and in 2006, during the 27th edition of the competition organised by theSociety for News Design,Rzeczpospolita was named "The best designed newspaper in the world".[8]Rzeczpospolita received the Grand Front award also in 2013, for the best cover (dedicated to the resignation ofPope Benedict XVI).[citation needed]
rp.pl was one of the first online news services in the Polish media. The service has operated for 25 years as of 2022, having been launched in March 1997. From November 2014, it has been usingRWD technology (full responsiveness). Its current version has been available since 2015.
The website has over 32 million hits and 3 million unique users per month (data as of January 2017[9]).Rp.pl is one of the most frequently visited nationwide newspaper websites. In the "Business-Finance-Law" category, Gremi Group is ranked the 6th among all Polish groups of online services.[9]
Rzeczpospolita application for mobile devices combines 5 types of content: printed issues in PDF format, printed newspaper edition in digital form (HTML), videos from Rzeczpospolita.tv (VOD), live streaming of Rzeczpospolita.tv programs, and the latest news from rp.pl service (Najnowsze z RP.pl newsfeed).
The application is available onGoogle Play and AppleApp Store.
Since 2009, a video service ofRzeczpospolita has been available at tv.rp.pl. In 2016, an online Rzeczpospolita TV was launched at the same address, currently broadcasting 24/7. Its core are the three daily live programs, "RZECZoPOLITYCE", "RZECZoBIZNESIE" and "RZECZoPRAWIE", as well as commercial programs and coverage of the events organised byRzeczpospolita. The hosts are well-knownRzeczpospolita contributors, such as Bogusław Chrabota, Michał Szułdrzyński, Marcin Piasecki, Jacek Nizinkiewicz, Ewa Usowicz, Tomasz Pietryga, or Anna Wojda.
The channel is broadcast viaGoogle Hangouts and can be watched daily through the home page of rp.pl. All programs are also available as VOD on tv.rp.pl.
A single average issue ofRzeczpospolita is about 65,000 copies.[10] In 2016, approximately 54,000 copies were sold.[10]
Rzeczpospolita is distributed through paper version subscription, paper version sales and digital version. Subscription is divided into Basic subscription and Plus subscription dedicated to a more involved, specialised audience. Subscription ofRzeczpospolita offers features such as professional book publications, training, multimedia tools, or access to the archives.
The digital version ofRzeczpospolita is available around 21:00CET. on the day preceding the day of paper edition.
Rzeczpospolita has been often rated as the most frequently quoted medium in Poland, and it is considered anewspaper of record for Poland.[3]
In 2014, it was considered the most opinion-making medium of the decade (2004–2013). Also in 2016,Rzeczpospolita won in the ranking of the most influential media in Poland, prepared on a regular basis by the Media Monitoring Institute.[11]
The editorial staff currently consists of 150 persons (including the secretariat and editors of online content). The headquarters are located in Warsaw at ul. Prosta 51.
(in Polish)