OVER the past two months, as shops have closed and newspaper circulations have dropped, we’ve been inundated with emails from people who want to contribute to the paper beyond what they pay for their own subscriptions.
Our advice at first was to purchase gift subscriptions – that way, we get new readers and much-needed cash in to help us get through the crisis. But we soon realised that option didn’t quite suit everybody, so we’ve been working furiously behind the scenes to get a system in place which will allow our readers new ways to support your newspaper.
1. Donate straight to our new Fighting Fund
You can now choose to contribute directly to The National with either a recurring or a one-off payment which will go straight into a pot of money to be used to either invest directly in our journalism or grow our readership.
2. Increase your monthly digital subscription payment
For our nearly 10k+ digital subscribers, we’ve introduced a new tier which allows you to contribute £20 per month instead of £9.99.
Email here: customerservices@thenational.scot
3. Purchase a gift subscription for a friend or colleague
Since we first suggested this as an option, we’ve added more than 200 new digital subscribers – a much needed lifeline for the paper while shops are closed and newspaper sales are down.
www.thenational.scot/subscribe/gift
It goes without saying that please only choose to support us in these ways if you are able to.
With Nicola Sturgeon impressing during the coronavirus crisis, it looks increasingly likely that there will once again be a pro-independence majority at Holyrood next year – which means we will need to gear up for indyref2.
We’ve got lots of exciting plans for that campaign that we can’t wait to reveal to you, but it’s crucial that we get through this difficult period first.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
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