Piss Off

Between leaving my house and traveling to university, I am offered a free newspaper about ten times. There are distributors of The London Paper and the London Lite absolutely everywhere. You’ll find them at Bus-Stops, outside Tube stations, outside shops, on the street corners harassing London’s hurried commuters.

If I want a paper, I’ll pick it up. Why the suppliers of these free papers insist on shoving a newspaper in my face is beyond me.

I have felt this way for quite a while and I get pissed off when I'm constantly stopped in my tracks even though I make gestures to suggest I don’t want a paper, they still  insist on throwing one at me. Not to mention that they’re are hundreds of these guys in one bloody street, It infuriates me, makes walking the streets of London even more hectic than usual.

The way “the Metro” is dispersed suits me fine, via newsstand and allows people to pick up a paper as they please and I desire for that method to be introduced with other free papers. Just because members of the public are not paying for the paper does not necessarily mean we want it or that they can force it upon us.The evening papers particularly are aggressively thrust at commuters, meaning plenty of people must end up with them who didn’t want them. The morning Metro is at least in racks for those who want one to pick up a copy.

Over a million free papers are given away in London every day, with the Metro in the morning, and the London Paper and London Lite in the evenings.My other issue is this; the content of these papers merely consist of advertising, advertising and more advertising. The news content is generally the same as any other tabloid or broadsheet. (I mean you get what you pay for, don’t you.)The journalism is abysmal in all three. They compile of adverts, celebrity gossip, and listings. Actual news is not the priority, and the papers are primarily a vehicle for advertising.

So then I have to ask; what purpose do these papers serve?

I wonder how many people feel the same way. Am I exaggerating here or do these damn paper guys seem to be everywhere?

Gimme a break.

By Hannah Ali

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