2 Chicago-area newsstands gearing up to sell copies of Charlie Hebdo

By Ellen Kobe

Two Chicago-area newsstands are preparing to sell the “survivor   issue” of Charlie Hebdo, the satirical French publication that gained worldwide attention after two masked gunmen killed 12 people, including 10 journalists and two police officers at its Paris headquarters two weeks ago.

Eric Ismond, manager of the Chicago-Main Newsstand in Evanston, verified that  limited copies of Charlie Hebdo will be for sale at 7 a.m. Friday. The weekly newspaper will also be sold at City Newsstand in Portage Park starting at 7 a.m. Ismond said that the two stores will most likely not implement a raffle drawing process for customers to obtain copies because he is expecting the magazine distributor LMPI to deliver a larger quantity to both locations next week.

More than 3 million copies of the Jan. 14 issue — the first printed since the massacre — sold out in France. Charlie Hebdo printed an additional 2 million copies to meet overwhelming demand for the issue, even on sites such as eBay.

Chicago-Main Newsstand, located at 860 Chicago Ave. in Evanston expects to sell five copies of Charlie Hebdo at its marked price, which newsstand manager assumes to be less than $10 based on past rates.
Chicago-Main Newsstand, located at 860 Chicago Ave. in Evanston expects to sell five copies of Charlie Hebdo at its marked price, which newsstand manager assumes to be less than $10 based on past rates. (Ellen Kobe/Medill)

At each location, five copies will be available to the public on a first-come, first-serve basis, Ismond said. He added that the newsstands will sell each copy of the publication at its marked price, which he expects to be less than $10 based on past rates.

Ismond said that the newsstands have already received a couple hundred inquiries about the availability of Charlie Hebdo.

“We’ll probably get mixed feelings about [the raffle],” Ismond said.

Ismond said that if LMPI receives another shipment, both newsstands might sell more copies after the initial round. Additionally, a copy of the publication will be on display at both stores.