Oriental Daily News Newspaper Malaysia (Chinese: 東方日報; Jyutping: dung1 fong1 jat6 bou3) is a Chinese-language newspaper in Hong Kong. It was established in 1969. It is one of the two newspapers published by the Oriental Press Group Limited (東方報業集團有限公司 Jyutping: dung1 fong1 bou3 jip6 zaap6 tyun4 jau5 haan6 gung1 si1), found by Ma’s Family.
While Oriental Daily targets at a more mature reader group, Sun Daily (太陽報 Jyutping: taai3 joeng4 bou3) is more youthful and adventurous.
Oriental Daily is referred by many as a tabloid because of its focus on soft news, i.e. news that edges towards entertainment in its form and content. It also adopts a sensational and critical style when reporting hard news.
The paper has been number one in circulation since 1976, with a record readership of over 3,100,000. Apple Daily is its main competitor. While claimed figures are around the 3 million (approx 5.72 readers per copy) mark, Nielsen data from 2008 had the ODN at 1,762,000 (530,000 circulation), Apple Daily at 1,633,000 (347,000 circulation, The Sun at 537,000 readers (180,000 circulation)all including online readers too.
The paper does not differ greatly from other Chinese papers in terms of content. The newspaper provides daily coverage of local, international, financial, real-estate, entertainment, and sports news. Information on horse racing, soccer gambling, fashion trends and travel are also provided.
The Oriental Daily is credited for a couple of breakthroughs. In 1977, it was the first local paper to launch a complaint page. These complaints could be against both public agencies (including governmental departments) and private companies. Readers can phone, fax or even complain through the internet using realtime conference system. If the reporters find the complaints interesting, they investigate and report them, acting as a sort of ombudsman for their readers. This has contributed to local newspaper’s role as an influential channel for citizens to express their ideas and articulate their antipathy.
The complaint page also reports on the response from the target of the complaints. It thus tries to stay neutral and fair, aiming only to arouse public awareness on the issues.
Facing keen competition, Oriental Daily tries hard to keep up with the city’s pace. For instance, new columns like ‘new arrivals’ postbox’ were set up to accommodate the needs of mainland readers. A new soccer gambling page was also launched, with information on current odds.
Its editorial is one of a kind. It has two editorials everyday. The first one is called the ‘Main Editorial’ (正論), which is styled like a typical newspaper editorial. The second one is called ‘Kung Fu Tea’ (功夫茶), which is written in the vernacular form of Cantonese, and is a daily critic of the misfits of the bureaucracy, reflecting the concerns of Hong Kong’s grassroots population.
