Newsprint is a name given to thin, non-archival paper which is mainly produced for use in packaging and jobbing printing. It is a thin, diaphanous paper, like that used in phonebooks and hotel Bibles.

Because it is very thin and cheap by the sheet, relief printmakers use newsprint to take proofs and to clean blocks after a printing session: a couple of prints on newsprint will allow much of the letterpress ink to be printed off the block, which saves wiping with solvents. Intaglio printmakers use it to give plates a final wipe before putting them through a rolling press (that is, after a thorough wipe with a tarlatan cloth, which removes most of the ink from the raised surfaces of the plate).

This pack contains 500 sheets of 45gsm newsprint measuring approximately 64 x 90cm.

The Use of Newsprint in Make-Ready.

Newsprint is often used to create overlays, which adjust or equalise the downward pressure on a plate or block, a process known as make-ready.

At 45gsm, this paper is extremely lightweight. It can therefore be used as packing when printing/burnishing by hand or in a simple press (a nipping press, for instance). It can also be used as packing on the cylinder of a cylinder press, or in the tympan of a platen press. When used in this way, it sits behind the sheet which will take the impression from the inked block or type. If the print is under-impressed, simply add another sheet of newsprint to subtly increase the downward pressure from the cylinder drum or platen. A thicker paper would be useless when making fine adjustments to the packing.

When small areas of a block or plate need more pressure, it is possible to insert small circles or strips of newsprint into the packing. If used in this way, the insert should be torn rather than cut, so that a feathered edge is produced. This spreads the pressure difference out gradually over a larger area, so that the increased packing isn't visible in the print.

Using Newsprint to cut Friskets.

The other use of newsprint in relief printing is to produce 'friskets'. Friskets sit in the tympan of a platen press, between the type or block and the paper. They are used to mask areas of the sheet which are intended to remain white in the final impression from splotches of ink, which can build up on the lowered surfaces of the block or type. Printers generally produce friskets by taking an impression on newsprint and using a craft knife to cut out the areas they wish to see in the final print. This creates a 'window' through which the block or the type prints when the press is in action.