Local Media
Newspapers and Magazines
It's not easy for papers of any kind to compete with free internet news sources these days, but Oxford still manages to support a few (alongside a number of community-produced newsletters). The most popular locals are the Oxford Times, the city's upmarket weekly, and the Oxford Mail, a tabloid-style daily. Many homes also receive free papers (whether willingly or not) including the Oxford Star. The Newsquest Group is responsible for all three of the aforementioned publications, and plenty more countywide, whilst the Courier Group produces additional titles including the Oxford Journal (a free pick-up paper formally known as the Oxford Courier, est. 1972) and Oxford Living (a glossy lifestyle magazine).
Amongst the other free publications on offer you will find neighbourhood papers such as the Jericho Echo and the North Oxford Association's NOA news, and numerous nightlife-related magazines (usually launching in October only to plunge into receivership by January). The only one of the latter to stay the course, being a reliable guide to live music locally, is Nightshift, a black-and-white magazine available free at music venues, chip shops etc. (or downloadable from their website, which features an online message board).
Student Publications
The 20,000 or so students have, in term time, the weekly rival papers the Cherwell and the Oxford Student, the termly magazine Isis, and their college noticeboards on which about 5,000 of them glance daily – including Sundays – at the large coloured sheets of Daily Information (in which we must confess an interest). Daily Information becomes Weekly Information during the vacation.
Radio
BBC Radio Oxford. Broadcasts on 95.2FM; sounds a lot like BBC Radio 2. (Which we quite like, now we're getting on a bit.)
Fox FM. Long-established leader in the slightly younger pop market, broadcasting on 102.6 and 97.4 MHz FM.
Jack FM. Broadcasting on 106.8 and 106.4 FM across Oxfordshire. New station (October 2007) for adults in Oxfordshire with a good playlist of music from the 60s to today. Sounds like BBC Radio 2 drivetime narrated by the anarchic voice of Little Britain. Runs a lot of fun, locally-focussed offers and promotions.
Oxford's FM 107.9. Formerly 'Passion'. Plays the latest in chart, dance and R'n'B for the younger end of the pop market.
OX4 Radio, 87.9FM. East Oxford's community radio station, broadcasting online, and occasionally on air with a temporary licence. Applying for a 5 year full time FM licence in late 2008. Emphasis on very local, usually music-related, activity.
TV
Six TV is Oxford's local TV station, broadcasting daily from a site on the Woodstock Road.
Websites
Clicking on the links above will take you to pages of information that often contain more - or at least as much - content as do the programmes/publications with which they are associated. Daily Info does not carry news content, as such (well not yet, anyway), but we are aware of the growing trend of DIY media online (from YouTube, MySpace and Twitter to blogging and Wikis). One of the better organised forms of this new kind of news provision is Oxford Indymedia, a local branch of an international network of 'alternative' media. You can add your own stories.
