Tabloids of London

New York's Intelligencer touches base with Paul Field, recently hired to head the National Enquirer. Near the end of the half-page item, there's some interesting insight on the state of American journalism:

You've hired a bunch of British journalists. Are they better at this than Americans? In the U.K., everybody reads the newspaper every day. Most people read two or three. The competition just makes journalists very aggressive. ... British journalists don't understand that there isn't the same national newspaper. The Enquirer needs to brand itself as America's national newspaper.

Oh, so? What about USA Today or, arguably, the New York Times? Scrappy snarkiness at the outset -- or does Field really think he can retool the trashy celebrity gossip tab into a national newspaper of note?