A war that's been thirty years in the making is scheduled to break out on January 1st, 1988.

If you want to get some idea of the tense atmosphere, a glance at the history of the rise and fall of newspapers recently will give you a clue: The first to shut down was the Hsien Tai Daily News of Chiayi, which was taken over last July by the Hua Sung Investment Co. Shortly thereafter the Min Tsu Evening News announced it was ceasing publication after 38 years in the business. In August the China Daily News dissolved its northern edition and merged it into its southern office. And in November the China Evening News declared a financial emergency and received support from the United Daily News group.

On the other side, new hands eager to join the fray were itching to give it a go. Ch'eng She-wo, founder of The World College of Journalism, has already declared his intention to found a newspaper. Other possible entrants include the Homey Group, the "Democratic Progressive Party," and Legislative Yuan members Lin Yu-hsiang and Chao Shao-k'ang. Nipped in the bud was the Hua Sung Group's Time News, the successor to Hsien Tai Daily News.

Even before the outbreak of hostilities, the rumbling of guns was clear on the horizon.

The first barrage was a fight for personnel.

Ever since February 5, 1986, when Premier Yu Kuo-hwa expressed his intention to reconsider the questions of newspaper registration and limitations on page number, newspapers on Taiwan have been rattling sabers and marshalling forces.

The most active have been the China Times and the United Daily News. From February to April last year, the two major chains altogether hired 116 reporters, editors, and translators, an unprecedentedly large number. Many among them were veterans from other papers, so their recruiting produced a domino effect. The Central Daily News, the Independence Evening Post, the Free Press Daily, and the Taiwan Daily News soon followed suit, and the wave of hiring had not stopped by the end of the year.

Worthy of note was the fact that the two main newspaper chains, in contrast with the past, did not always come up winners in the headhunting contest. Many veteran journalists left the two major dailies for papers that they consider have greater potential for development, such as the Free Press Daily and the Independence Evening Post.

That the first barrage was fought over talented personnel is understandable. Yang Chih-hung, director of the department of public media at Ming Chuan College Commerce for Women, points out that even before newspapers are clear about how much money they plan to spend or what kind of paper they plan to bring out after deregulation, none wants to lose out to the others in hiring. "Going after people is no mistake," he says.

With the crack troops recruited under their respective banners, the next question has become how to go about doing battle.

Before January 1st, the 23 newspapers on the island continued to print their standard twelve pages and make their scheduled deliveries, but attentive readers could discover that some quiet changes were taking place.

Hey! a reader might exclaim, glancing at the front page, is this paper running an ad for itself? Oh, so they want to put up a new building. How come? Well, it seems they'll need it after deregulation. Since the government announced its intention to lift press restrictions, the China Times, the Free Press Daily, the United Daily News, and the Independence Evening Post have all begun putting up new buildings, while their acquisition of additional printing presses, delivery vans, computers, and other equipment goes without saying.

The content of some newspapers has clearly changed. The Central Daily News, for instance, in August changed its crime page to a section on stocks and bonds and increased the space of its popular literary supplement from a page to a page and a half.

Unwilling to lag behind, the China Times in October changed two of its pages to social and financial sections and added eye-catching pictures and screaming headlines to attract the reader's attention. The Times also plans to introduce a photography section to give good pictures "exposure."

The paper that has changed the most is the Free Press Daily. Each day its lead story features a controversial news issue reported on from behind the scenes and viewed from various angles, a far cry from the paper's previous focus on local news and conservative stance.

The competition for advertisements and circulation is growing hotter and hotter. After the number of pages in the papers is increased, advertising space will also expand. Says Yen Po-ch'in, deputy director of the China Daily News, "We may get a certain amount of new ads, but overall the number won't increase very much." He foresees competition becoming "more and more vicious."

Judged by present trends, Yen's prediction may come true. Rumor has it that the two major dailies will slash their rates for classified ads from NT$45 per line to NT$5. And the advertising section, so much reviled in the past, may be "turning over a new leaf" in the marketing struggle. The United Daily News already plans to distribute its ads for the crowded Taipei area edition among other editions.

According to an agreement made by the island's newspaper associations, prices will be adjusted slightly upward after the increase in pages. Because of this, the situation in which each household reads two or three newspapers, which is quite common now, is expected to diminish gradually until each household subscribes to only one. How to grab that single market share is the object of much brain racking by newspaper distribution departments.

Many scholars and experts believe that after press restrictions are lifted the newspaper market will be chaotic for a time but that the strong positions of both major dailies will remain firm. Many other people hold a different view, however.

"It's hard to say," says one young reporter, exuding confidence. "The Thailand Daily News [Thailand's major daily] collapsed, didn't it?"

It seems there's still something to fight for.

[Picture Caption]

Newspaper moguls, some stealing from each other's bowls of "personnel," prepare to make their moves on a board labeled "market." (cartoon by Chu Te-yung)

The newspapers on the ground will at least double. Evening papers on Nanyang St. are being bundled for distribution.

A worker in the editorial department at the China Times marks the countdown to battle.(photo by Hsiao Chia-ch'ing)

After the number of pages increases, newspapers will no longer fit on posting boards.

With the increased space, newspapers are getting ready for a battle of pictures.

This structure on Minsheng E. Rd. is rumored to be the future headquarters of the Free Press Daily. The absence of any signs on the building or the surrounding fence envelops the project in mystery.

The office of the stillborn Time News with a copy of a test issue.

The newspapers on the ground will at least double. Evening papers on Nanyang St. are being bundled for di.