It's loud, trashy and cheap: It's Síp, a new daily launched in October that aims to brazenly take over a hefty chunk of the country's tabloid newspaper market.

Tempting readers with a staple menu of sex and scandal, gossip about Czech reality TV shows and pictures of bare-breasted women, some say Síp marks a new low for Czech journalism.

That probably doesn't trouble its publishers.

Síp, curiously enough, refuses comment, but if the success of tabloid publishing worldwide is any indicator, it's surely onto a good thing.

Circulation numbers for the nationwide dailies tell the story: Blesk, the nation's major scandal sheet, owned by the Swiss publishing group Ringier, sells 515,000–520,000 issues per day, easily dominating the market. That compares with around 297,000 for the more respectable news daily Mladá fronta Dnes. News daily Lidové noviny, sells just 68,500, while the respected, erudite business daily Hospodárské noviny sells just over 62,000.

And with Síp priced at just 5 Kc (20 U.S. cents), another new low, it is bound to appeal even more to a wide readership that may or may not have finished high school. Officially, the publication, which hit the stands Oct. 18 and is published by Vltava-Labe-Press, claims a circulation of 300,000. Síp replaces the company's previous daily, Vecerník Praha, which folded after 50 years.

Jan Jirák of Charles University's Center for Media Studies calls the arrival of Síp tragic — but perhaps not serious. In his opinion, Blesk and Síp cannot both maintain strong circulation.

"In this competition I would probably vote for Blesk as the survivor," he said. "It's more established."

And his candid assessment of the newest player on the yellow journalism market? "Síp is garbage. Blesk is garbage as well. Both tabloids are playing the same stupid theater play."

Síp's journalists and graphic designers are particular weak points, Jirák said.

Blesk's editor-in-chief, Jirí Fabian, also refused to talk to The Prague Post, but business director Karel Polcar conceded that tabloids do very well on the Czech market. Still, he says, you need to know what you're doing — mere topless women and animal stories will not guarantee good business long-term.

"The appearance of Síp might cause a small efflux of readers, but it won't be anything dramatic," he says. "Some people might buy both Blesk and Síp because they are curious. New tabloids have appeared in the past but never caused any harm to Blesk. We are not worried."