Contemporary Regional Press on the Example of the Łódź Region: An Outline of Issues

Abstract

Regional media play significant roles from a scientific perspective. The press is particularly crucial in this regard, serving as a source of information not only in a historical context but also in a contemporary one, reflecting both the transformations occurring within a given region and documenting events that unite its residents. In the Łódź region, this oldest form of mass communication is represented by some of the nation’s earliest periodicals, such as “Dziennik Łódzki” (est. 1884) and “Express Ilustrowany” (est. 1923). However, the press in this area also includes publications issued in towns like Aleksandrów Łódzki, Konstantynów Łódzki, Pabianice, and Zgierz. The goal of the article’s authors is to present the range of periodicals published in the region and highlight their purposes. This was made possible by accessing a list of newspapers and magazines published in the Łódź region from 1989–2023, compiled by the Józef Piłsudski Regional Public Library in Łódź. The primary research methods used in this study were the historical method, bibliographic method, and content analysis of the press and online resources. In total, 10 periodicals from Łódź and 39 from the Łódź region were analyzed. It was noted, among other things, that the greatest number of new titles emerged in the first decade following Poland’s political transformation. The periodicals exhibit great diversity and vary in publishing frequency. Most of the discussed publications are available in both print and digital formats.