The Daily Prothom Alo (Bengali: প্রথম আলো Prothom Alo "First Light") is a major daily newspaper in Bangladesh, published from Dhaka in the Bengali language. Prothom Alo is second largest newspaper in Bangladesh based on circulation.[2] According to National Media Survey 2014, conducted by MRB Bangladesh, more than 4.3 million people read the print edition of Prothom Alo every day. The online portal of Prothom Alo is the most visited Bangladeshi and Bengali website of the world.[3] It started its journey on 4 November 1998.

History

Front page of Prothom Alo on 11 June 2012

Prothom Alo was founded on 4 November 1998. The circulation of Prothom Alo grew from an initial circulation of 42,000 to a circulation of a half million copies.[1] The newspaper distinguished itself by its investigations of acid attacks and violence against women and pushing for tougher laws against the sale of acid.[1][4] From press facilities located in Dhaka, Chittagong and Bogra, around 5,00,000 copies (as of March ‘2014) are circulated each day.[2] According to National Media Survey 2012, everyday 5.1 million people read the print edition of Prothom Alo. The claimed readership of the print edition of this newspaper is 9.6 million.[5] According to a brand equity study conducted by Quantum Consumer Solutions Limited, Prothom Alo is considered to be the most influential newspaper brand in Bangladesh.