Now Dagbladet is proposing to Bergen and Trondheim

From Monday, the journalists are in place, and the desk at Hasle in Oslo is ready to deliver extra news to the people of Bergen and Trøndelag.

- "We are delighted to be present in Bergen and Trondheim with our own people for the first time in many years. Dagbladet is for everyone, and we hope and believe that this gives everyone with an interest in the two cities an extra reason to visit us," says development editor at Dagbladet, Martine Lunder Brenne.

It's not just the main newspaper that will benefit from the fact that Dagbladet is now closer to the pulse of Norway's second largest cities. Dagbladet is also launching two new local newspapers, one in each of the cities, to keep people in Trøndelag and Bergen up to date on what's happening in their local areas.

There will be a Dagblad local version, with separate web addresses for these local newspapers in Bergen (dagbladet.no) and Trondheim (dagbladet.no).

- The local market is incredibly exciting for a national newspaper to enter, and in true Dagbladet spirit, breaking news will be the most important thing we do. We promise to hit the ground running from the start," says Lunder Brenne.

Dagbladet has experienced tremendous growth in readership in recent years. The latest figures from Mediebedriftenes Landsforbund show that Dagbladet has gained almost 100,000 more readers in the past year. This is the largest growth of all Norwegian media, and provides a good basis for producing even more good journalism from all over the country. Initially, it is Bergen and Trondheim that will benefit the most from this.

Politics, please

Both cities are facing major political tensions ahead of local elections next fall, with several hot-button political issues that could have a major impact on voters.

Dagbladet will now be much closer to the political environments in these cities, which will also benefit the whole country. What happens in Bergen and Trondheim also has significance beyond the city and municipal boundaries there.

- This is greedily good and delicious. Dagbladet's political coverage has now gained another spearhead. We have long covered Oslo politics closely. Now those in power in the west and in Trøndelag can expect more critical Dagbladet journalism too. Our readers and viewers across the country are the big winner, so congratulations are in order," says Steinar Solås Suvatne, head of the political department at Dagbladet, and continues

- We are heading for an extremely exciting municipal election next year. The best coverage of politics in Bergen and Trondheim will be in Dagbladet.

One person who is excited that Dagbladet is making the move to Bergen is former Prime Minister Erna Solberg (H).

- I think it's very nice. I hope that it means we'll get a lot of Bergen news, including in the national press. We need that. The news is very Oslo-centric," Solberg tells Dagbladet.

She also believes it is important that Bergens Tidende has competition.

- I believe that politics, culture and social life in Bergen benefit from more people following, watching, writing and not just depending on 1-2 people in Bergens Tidende.

Want to reach a wide audience

Development editor Lunder Brenne is also optimistic about the journalism Dagbladet's readers will receive from Bergen and Trondheim in the future.

- We are always looking for position, and to reach a wide audience with our journalism. That's why we had the highest readership growth of all from the first quarter of 2021 to 2022. Now we're moving on, and it's entirely appropriate to propose a marriage proposal to the people of Bergen and Trøndelag - no matter where in the country they read us. We hope they will give us a warm welcome," says Lunder Brenne.