Catalan News sees record month for page views in March

CatalanNews.com has seen a record number of page views for the month of March 2020. Additionally, the past month was also our best in terms of users, new users, and sessions visiting our site, among other metrics. In page views alone, March saw an increase of over 600% compared with February. 

The reason for this is obvious. We know that these increases and record figures are down to people’s need for information and accurate reporting right now.

During this time of pandemic, we understand the importance of our work more than ever, underlined by the fact that more people are reading our stories than ever before. We strive to give updates on the coronavirus situation in Catalonia and Spain as a whole as thoroughly and accurately as possible. 

March 2020 is the month that the state of alarm was declared across Spain for only the second time since the transition to democracy, due to this virus that has claimed thousands of lives already and paralyzed the economy, leaving many people without income. It is a month that will undoubtedly go down in history.

Last month saw more people visiting our site than October 2017, when the Catalan independence referendum took place, and October 2019, when the organizers of said referendum were convicted of sedition and sentenced to jail; two of the biggest events in recent Catalan history that both had huge international interest.

International audience in Catalonia

The increase in visits and page views to our website shows us that people are looking to be informed on the situation related to covid-19 here. The amount of visitors coming to our website from Spain (and with the vast majority of those coming from within Catalonia) is very close to the amount coming from the United States and United Kingdom combined. 

This tells us that we are serving an audience of both English language speakers who live here, who are impacted by the current affairs and administrational decisions that take place here, as well as people abroad who want to keep up to date with our ongoing situation. Around two thirds of our readers speak English as their first language.

For this we aim to report in a manner that gives our readers context of governmental bodies, decrees, and social entities that could have an impact on the lives of English speakers living here. 

Above all else, we aim to be a public service, informing you on Catalan and Spanish politics, current affairs, and most significantly right now and for the foreseeable future, societal issues. 

With all this said, we are proud that our record numbers indicate that we have the trust of the public, and have become one of the biggest and most relevant platforms for news in Catalonia in the English language.

For this, we want to give our thanks to our readers, without whom this project would mean little or nothing. Thank you. We will continue doing our best to keep you as best informed as possible about the coronavirus situation, and other stories happening here.

For any comments, questions, or queries, you can always contact our newsroom through the email address catalannews@acn.cat.

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