Paper Monitor
11:29 UK time, Friday, 28 May 2010
A service highlighting the riches of the daily press.
Here we go again - it's day two of iPad in the News.
Yesterday's Paper Monitor observed the dilemma facing HM Press over the UK launch of Apple's latest gadget: how many column inches does one give this shiny toy before it starts to feel like free advertising?
One way is to fashion a sort of feature piece around the story, ticking the editorial justification box as well as the box labelled "I want one of those".
Paper Monitor even devised its own scoring system - based on how wide the grins each piece would elicit at Apple HQ - called the iPad (Incidental Publicity AccorDed) system.
There's plenty more
The Times offers several ways into the, er, story. On page three there's a handy half-page illustrated guide on how to use the iPad edition of the Times itself. Further in, there's a spread on Apple's triumph over Microsoft in the "market value" stakes, alongside a story about how the iPad could change newspaper readership habits. For those who might somehow have overlooked the huge illustrated guide on page three, we're reminded: "The Times also intends to introduce its own iPad app."
And if anyone is still in any doubt about what's going on down at ye olde Apple shoppe today, the Times' Bricks & Mortar property pull-out leads with a full-page picture of the device and advises "iPad, you pad". Online there's also a Times iPad live blog.
But just when it looked like the Times-Apple marriage was a match made in tech heaven, what's this on page 20 of the paper - a full page advert from PC World announcing the "iPad is here". And what newspaper app does it choose to parade in its advert? Why, the Guardian's.
Paper Monitor predicts an uneasy nervousness in the News International advertising department this morning.
Anyway, back to that heavily contrived ratings system... The PC World ad notwithstanding, this is a golden moment for Appletorial.
iPad: 11/10
News International stablemate, the Sun, has enlisted the ´óÏó´«Ã½'s Richard Bacon to expatiate on why . As the headline suggests, it's a pretty glowing piece, although Paper Monitor's eye was drawn to the disclaimer at the end: "For my employers at ´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio 5 live: No free iPad will be/was received by Richard Bacon for this review."
iPad: 10/10
It's starting to sound like bonuses all round for Apple's PR crew.
That's until the Daily Mail wades in, with - do you see what they did there, with that headline?
Writer Simon Mills takes apart Apple boss Steve Jobs' promise that the iPad will offer a "magical" e-mail experience.
Swimming with dolphins. Running a marathon. Those are magical experiences - the sort of things that fire you up and create a memorably emotional response. Pressing send on your email is just a rather dreary, but very necessary, part of modern life.iPad: 3/10
Finally, the Daily Mirror plays the whole thing very straight, with a pretty level-headed review
iPad: 6/10
The 
