All you need to know about Murdoch's Sun on Sunday

THE Sun on Sunday will be launched next weekend, News International has revealed. The announcement was made on Monday, just a few days after Rupert Murdoch (above) visited London to try and restore morale at the embattled paper following a series of arrests over claims of corruption.

During his visit he confirmed that he would be launching a Sunday edition of the tabloid, but did not say when.

There have been rumours about a Sun on Sunday ever since the News of the World was abruptly closed down last summer in the wake of the phone-hacking scandal. But many people have been caught off-guard by the speed at the turnaround.

Here's what we know about the new title:

Editor.
The paper will be edited by current Sun editor Dominic Mohan, but there will be a key role for former News of the World deputy editor Victoria Newton. It confirms that the paper will be part of a genuine seven-day operation. The Guardian reports: "Newton, the former deputy editor of the News of the World and one of the few senior staff from the paper to be retained by News International following its closure last July, will get a senior role but will answer to Mohan."

Summer of sport.
It is being launched now so it can benefit from a big summer of sport. According to The Daily Telegraph: "In business terms, the Sun on Sunday will provide News International with important revenues from its 60p cover price, but stands to make even more money from advertising around the Olympics. By launching now, it will have time to bed in and scoop up a share of the windfall in ad revenues expected to accompany the games."

Advertising.
The launch has the backing of media heavyweights. Martin Sorrell, chief executive of advertising giant WPP, which is responsible for a third of all print ads in the UK told Campaign: "I think both readers and advertisers will welcome a Sun every day of the week." He pointed out that after the closure of the NotW overall ad spend on papers had fallen and many readers simply stopped buying papers.

Detractors.
It already has its knockers. A Twitter campaign using the hashtag #dontbuythesunanyday was launched soon after the announcement of the Sun on Sunday. It was spearheaded by fans of Liverpool FC, who have long boycotted the paper over its coverage of the 1989 Hillsborough disaster, in which 96 people died. The first edition of the new paper will be published on the day Liverpool head to Wembley to play in the Carling Cup final.

Staffing.
Staffing levels are unclear. Former NotW reporter Neville Thurlbeck used his blog to remind News International that it had a "moral duty" to re-hire as many NotW staff as possible. However, it seems the paper will be staffed mainly via a seven-day rota at the Sun. David Wooding, former political editor of the News of the World, said: "I'm told there will be extra staff taken on but this is not the News of the World in another guise, this is the Sun publishing on another day." Thurlbeck isn’t convinced this will come off. "A daily reporter is a pack animal, hunting with his rivals and moving en masse from story to story," he said. "A Sunday reporter is a loner."

Supplements.
The glossy lifestyle supplement Fabulous, which used to come out with the NotW, is likely to accompany the Sun on Sunday. The magazine survived the closure of the NotW and was moved to the Sun's Saturday edition. It will now revert to the Sunday paper, which is also likely to have several other supplements. ·