Malayalam language newspapers are widely circulated in south India. Malayalam language is one of the most widely spoken languages in south India. Newspapers in Malayalam language have a rich history of more than 120 years and they are mainly published from the major cities like Kozhikode, Kottayam, Kochi, Kannur, Thrissur, Thiruvananthapuram, Malappuram, etc. These newspapers are published in different editions - morning, afternoon and evening editions and include local, national and international news. Most of the Malayalam language newspapers have been serving the society for the past several years and many new newspapers have also started their journey in the recent years. The contributions of several renowned journalists have helped the Malayalam language newspapers in reaching new heights.
History of Malayalam Language Newspapers
The ownership pattern of most of the Malayalam language newspapers was private ownership before Independence. The newspapers also shared aggression against the British rulers. However, both the ownership pattern and point of views of the newspapers changed after Independence. Post independence, the newspapers started giving more emphasis on the burning issues of the country like eliminating poverty from the country, spreading the light of education to the remote areas, improving the condition of the underdeveloped sections of the society, etc.
Different Malayalam Language Newspapers
One of the first Malayalam language newspapers was Deepika. Started on 15th of April, 1887, Deepika propagated the ideas of patriotism and encouraged people to fight against the British rulers. In 1989, it shifted ownership from a Church in Kerala called the Syro Malabar Church to Rashtra Deepika Ltd. The newspaper is published from Kochi, Kannur, Thiruvananthapuram, Kottayam, Kozhikode and Thrissur. Malayala Manorama is another old newspaper published in Malayalam language and it started its journey only a year after Deepika. First published in 1988, Malayala Manorama has established itself as one of the most credible newspapers in Kerala. In 2007, Malayala Manorama crossed 15 lakhs copies mark, becoming the only regional newspaper to do so.
After Deepika and Malaya Manorama, many more Malayalam language newspapers came into existence during the earlier half of the twentieth century. Kerala Kaumudi was founded by K. Sukumaran BA and C. V. Kunhiraman in 1911. The daily is published from Kollam, Kannur, Thiruvananthapuram, Kozhikode, Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta, Thrissur, Kochi and Bengaluru. K. P. Kesava Menon, a freedom fighter, founded Mathrubhumi in 1923 in Kozhikode (Calicut). Presently, Mathrubhumi is the second most widely read newspaper daily in Kerala and has a strong readership, according to the Indian Readership Survey 2009. Mathrubhumi is published from Thiruvananthapuram, Kannur, Calicut, Kottayam, Palakkad, Kollam, Malappuram, Kochi, Thrissur, Mumbai, New Delhi, Bengaluru and Chennai. Other such newspapers which were founded were Chandrika (1934), Desabhimani (1942), Janmabhumi (1977), Grihasree, Madhyamam, Sirajdaily, Thejas, Varthamanam, etc. Apart from these, there are a few other publications like weekly and monthly magazines, published in Malayalam language.
