15 Uses of Newspaper in Our Daily Life

Newspaper is one of the major sources of news. The industry was once so prosperous that newspapers were not only published in the morning, but also in the evening. As time passed, newspaper is facing fierce competition from e-paper. The free information offered in the Internet and the environmental urge of paperless lower the demand on newspapers. The whole industry is shrinking. Each family has fewer newspapers left behind. The rarity in comparisons with the old days provokes me to think about the uses of newspaper in daily life. I come up with total 15 uses.

1. Provide news. There are two main divisions: local news and world news. News is available in different aspects such as political, economical, educational, social welfare, sports, job vacancies and many other advertisements.

2. Provide coverage. For example, newspaper is used to cover the floor while people are painting the wall.

3. Offer protection. For fragile items, such as porcelain dishes that do not have any original packaging, many shops will use newspaper to wrap the items for protection before putting them into a bag and give it to customers. Wrapping by newspaper is also commonly used when people move living place.

 (Gift wrapping, image from Google Search)

4. Use in gift wrapping. Newspaper allows people to go green by replacing the brand new colorful wrapping papers.

5. Clean disposal. Newspaper is often used to wrap the unwanted materials so that disposal can be done neatly, such as the soils left after transplanting.

6. Offer fast drying. If your shoes are soaked due to raining or washing, put newspaper in the shoes to absorb the water. This helps dry fast and keep the shoes in good shape, which is particularly important to leather shoes.

7. Help in cleaning. To clean the screen windows, use tapes to stick the newspaper at the outer side, then apply the vacuum cleaner on the screen windows. The dust will be captured more efficiently.

8. Help in writing. Many writers get inspirations from newspaper that can also be used at school for writing assignments. Teacher can request students to cut a piece of news that they find most interesting and write a summary plus student’s own comments in a weekly basis.

 (Papier-mâché, image from Google Search)

9. Use in arts and crafts. Newspaper is an important ingredient in Papier-mâché projects. A common example is making a Papier-mâché mask. Artists or crafts lover will glue newspaper all over a balloon or a person’s face as the first step.

 (Handmade papers, image from Google Search)

10. Use in paper making. Newspaper can be recycled to handmade paper for writing, arts and crafts, drawing and so on. With the paper making kit, the whole process can be done at home.

 (Paper airplane, image from Google Search)

11. For fun. Some parents will teach their children to fold planes by using newspaper. Roll newspaper together and play the hitting game with others.

12. Help in setting fire. A handy use in barbecue.

13. To boost friendship. When a person finished reading the newspaper, pass it on the other people. This act not only helps the next person save money, but also serves as a little gesture of friendship.

 (People reading newspaper, image from Google Search)

14. For a moment of peace. Some people use newspaper as a tool of pretence, to keep themselves look busy and resist disturbance.

15. Save people from embarrassment. When two people have no mood to talk, or lack of topics to gossip, divide the newspaper and each indulge in reading. Silence is no longer awkward.

Obviously, reading to get the news is the main use of newspaper. The secondary uses may look trivial to people, but they touch many aspects of our daily life, namely domestic, education, arts and crafts, recreation, social and relationships. Without newspaper, will people use brand new paper instead? Or will there be some new products available to perform the same secondary uses? It is inevitable for us to change our habits or behaviors to cope with the fading of newspaper if the days come.

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