Local Media Hits Back at Plans to Scrap Publication of Planning Notices
Editors and publishers across the UK have joined the NS in opposing government plans to scrap the statutory requirement for planning notices to be published in the first place people look for them – local newspapers. “The right to information about planning applications will be denied to millions if mandatory newspaper publication is abolished in favour of local authority websites,” said the NS.
The local media industry has been responding to the Department for Communities and Local Government consultation on Publicity for Planning Applications which is seeking views on its proposed changes to planning legislation.
In its response, the NS wrote: “The local paper remains the most effective, trusted and cost-effective way to ensure that statutory notices and other forms of government advertising reach the attention of the maximum number of people in a relevant area and therefore should be the primary publication method,” adding that “web publication on council websites would exclude a large section of the public” and therefore would not be as effective.
Independent research has shown that the local media is the first place people look for information about public notices and planning applications – more than twice as popular as local council websites. Local newspapers are considered by British people to be the most trusted and reliable of all media. They reach 82 per cent of the adult population and these high readership levels are consistent across all sectors of society, including the more difficult to reach audiences such as those on lower incomes and young people.
The DCLG consultation paper itself underlines the effectiveness of newspaper publication of planning applications and other public notices: ‘The use of newspaper advertisements has long been used as a way of ensuring that something has been exposed to the public, so to an extent it is culturally ingrained.’ It also points out that a number of groups, such as the Council to Protect Rural England, have echoed NS concerns that ‘removing the requirement to advertise in a newspaper may allow councils to post certain notices for controversial developments in an obscure way and thus ‘hide’ the emergence of some schemes.’
The NS said: “The regional and local press is the eyes and ears of the public at a local level. People look to their local paper to keep them informed and to hold public bodies to account on their behalf. Removing the mandatory requirement… to publish statutory notices in newspapers is likely to lead to a more secretive, less open approach.
“Why abandon such a powerful way of ensuring that planning authorities do publicise planning applications to the community affected, for a local authority website and method that will exclude millions?”
The NS submission points to the potential extent of digital exclusion “starkly set out in the report by Price Waterhouse Coopers (October 2009) commissioned by the Champion for Digital Inclusion to assess the ‘digital divide.’ This found that 10.2 million adults (21 per cent) of the adult population have never accessed the internet… A further 2 million had not used it for three months… 30 per cent of UK households had no internet connection.
“The Newspaper Society does not believe the consultation paper’s proposal to allow councils to drop mandatory newspaper advertising in favour of their own websites is sustainable in the light of those findings.”
The response notes that “the consultation paper ignores the very public interest reason for statutory publicity obligations. No attempt is made whatsoever to argue that the [proposals] would lead to improved communication of information to the public [or that] the public will benefit by implementation… Essentially, it advocates the loss of effective public information rights, simply in order to save money.”
Public objections in Cornwall, Grimsby and other parts of the country following the removal of council planning notices and other advertisements from local newspapers had forced those councils to reinstate them.
The NS stresses the importance of the government considering the wider background to the issue “in order to avoid the very damaging effect that adoption of the consultation paper’s proposals could have upon the regional press.”
It points out that the DCLG consultation paper’s impact assessment “anticipates that newspaper titles will go out of business and be lost to their communities as a result of implementation of the proposals… It outlines how some titles will disappear and other titles will lose revenue at a time when classified advertising revenues which underpin the independent local press have been hit hard by the economic climate… By making such a legislative change, the government would knowingly give the local authority the power to kill the local newspaper.”
The NS added: “Our members find it very difficult to understand how the DCLG can even contemplate putting forward proposals that it suggests could lead to the closure of local newspaper titles, at the very time when the government, Cabinet ministers, parliamentary committees, MPs, OFT, Ofcom, all express support for the regional and local newspaper industry and are assuring the industry that they are actively considering how to sustain, support and assist its future development. The implementation of the Digital Britain White Paper, backed by the Prime Minister, BIS and Culture Secretaries of State, directly addresses regional press concerns in ways which would be undermined by implementation of the proposals.”
For futher information please contact Santhah Rasaiah on 020 7632 7441 or e-mail santha_rasaiah@newspapersoc.org.uk.
Chancellor Believes Local Newspapers More Trusted Than Nationals
Alistair Darling told a Newspaper Conference lunch that he believes local newspapers are more trusted than national newspapers.
The Chancellor also revealed at the event last week that the UK’s banking system was just hours from collapse before the government stepped in last year.
Mr Darling spoke about Northern Rock, the car manufacturing industry – and admitted a fondness for chocolate digestives.
He talked of the importance of local media and the pressures facing the industry, adding: “I think people do trust their local newspapers more than they do national newspapers”.
He joked: “One of the most interesting things, as you will know working for newspapers outside of London, is that I’ll say something here, you will write it up, and it will appear in your paper tomorrow.
“Then about two or three days later, a national newspaper will phone up and say ‘I’ve got this really good exclusive’, you recognise it and say ‘that’s what I said to that newspaper about four days earlier’.”
The lunch was exclusively attended by regional press political journalists and chaired by Western Morning News political editor Matt Chorley.
For further information, please contact Paul Sinker on 020 763 274 24 or sinkerp@newspapersoc.org.uk.
MPs Grill Councils over ‘Propaganda Masquerading as Newspapers’
Hammersmith and Fulham Council’s fortnightly publication is “council propaganda masquerading as an independent local newspaper,” a Commons select committee on the Future for Local and Regional Media heard on Tuesday.
Philip Davies, MP for Shipley and a member of the Culture, Media & Sport Committee, asked Councillor Mark Loveday whether the real motivation behind H&F News was not saving taxpayers’ money but promoting the council’s propaganda.
Cllr Loveday was one of three councillors giving evidence to the inquiry. He said: “We are not there to set up a newspaper. We’re there to communicate messages we need to communicate. We’re not setting out to produce a democratic document.”
Earlier this year, the council’s leader Stephen Greenhalgh told a summit on local newspapers that H&F News was established “to fill the democratic deficit” because of the lack of independent local papers in that part of West London.
Trinity Mirror publishes the Gazette series and the Chronicle series, both of which circulate in Hammersmith and Fulham. The council says the low circulations of the papers mean they have had to produce their own publication to communicate with residents.
Sharon Taylor from Stevenage Borough Council and Cllr Gerald Vernon-Jackson of Portsmouth City Council were also giving evidence to the committee. Stevenage Council produces a magazine six times a year which takes no advertising and does not compete with independent local papers.
Portsmouth’s council publication is more frequent and takes advertising from the health, fire and police authorities, but the council also advertises in the independent Portsmouth Evening News. H&F News is fortnightly, ABC audited, and takes large volumes of third party advertising as well as carrying the council’s statutory notices and recruitment advertising.
East Surrey MP Peter Ainsworth highlighted the “very aggressive” nature of some council newspaper ratecards and asked Cllr Loveday: “Is this how you’ve managed to grab the [lucrative] property sector?”
Cllr Loveday told the committee “there is no evidence at all that local authorities taking advertising is hitting the paid for newspapers” and said it was unfair to blame councils for the problems of the local newspaper industry. He mentioned that the council had received an approach to buy H&F News and were open to offers but said it would be a very complicated thing to do.
MP Rosemary McKenna reminded the committee that the Digital Britain report had said the government needed to examine those local authorities which were “over-stepping the mark.” She pointed to an article in the Conservative-controlled “pretend newspaper” H&F News which she described as “a clear attack on the government.” She said “people looking at that [article] would assume it was objective reporting when it’s anything but… That’s what Digital Britain and the Newspaper Society are concerned about.”
Cllr Loveday said they operated to “a far stricter code than the PCC” but admitted that internal guidelines meant they only published quotes from members of the council’s Conservative Cabinet.
Examples of the three council publications were handed around the committee who said it was not immediately obvious that any of these were public sector publications. This was a concern, they said, because the content was often clearly skewed in favour of the council’s political agenda.
Holding up a copy of H&F News, Philip Davies demanded: “Why isn’t it plastered all over the front that it’s a council newspaper? Why aren’t you up front about it?” Cllr Loveday said council research had shown that 80 per cent of residents were aware it was a council newspaper.
Tom Watson, MP for West Bromwich East, asked what councils would do if they were freed from their obligation to publish statutory notices in local newspapers and if every public sector job was advertised online.
Cllr Vernon-Jackson said that using the local paper enabled the council to reach a wider jobs pool and added: “I think there will always be a need to advertise in the local paper.”
Sharon Taylor said that in Stevenage they were experimenting with social networking tools like Twitter and Facebook to reach younger residents but felt they would need to continue to use a mix of media. “There are people who don’t want to go on the internet,” she said. “We have to be careful about exclusion.”
“Many local papers have very effective websites,” she added, citing an example from her local Archant title The Comet which sends users an email alert when new content is available online.
After the evidence session on council publications, the committee moved on to the radio industry with a panel comprising Andrew Harrison of the RadioCentre, Steve Fountain, head of radio for the KM Group, and Travis Baxter, MD of Bauer Radio.
Meanwhile, the Audit Commission is currently considering whether to conduct an inquiry into council publications, as invited by Stephen Carter and set out in the Digital Britain report. However, the Commission has made it clear that it would only look at the value for money achieved by councils on communicating with the public and would not consider impact on independent local newspapers. The NS has therefore called for the OFT to examine the impact and competition issues surrounding council publications.
Note: Following a letter from the Newspaper Society to Shadow Communities Secretary Caroline Spelman in September, Mrs Spelman has raised a number of questions in Parliament over local government publicity and council newspapers with the Department for Communities and Local Government.
- MPs accuse councils of producing ‘propaganda’ newspapers (Media Guardian)
For further information please contact Lynne Anderson on 020 7632 7421 or e-mail lynne_anderson@newspapersoc.org.uk.
Local Media Journalist Shortlisted for Paul Foot Award
A regional newspaper journalist has been shortlisted for the Paul Foot Award which rewards outstanding campaigning journalism.
Rob Waugh, Yorkshire Post news reporter, beat a host of journalists from national newspapers to make the eight-strong shortlist.
The judges’ citation say that his work includes highlighting cavalier spending at Leeds Metropolitan University, discrediting a takeover of Sheffield Wednesday football club, and a long-running investigation into Leeds City Credit Union.
Rob said: “I’m pleased to be recognised and I think it’s really good a regional paper’s on the shortlist. These are tough times for regional papers but it’s important that we still somehow find time to dig beneath the surface as much as possible.
“It’s a real challenge in the current climate but I’ve been fortunate to have been supported by the senior editorial staff at the Yorkshire Post.”
Last year Jim Oldfield, Rossington Community Newsletter editor, was shortlisted for the award which was set up by Private Eye and the Guardian in memory of campaigning journalist Paul Foot who died in 2004.
The £5,000 first prize will be presented on Monday with each of the runners-up receiving £1,000.
For further information, please contact Paul Sinker on 020 763 274 24 or sinkerp@newspapersoc.org.uk.
Schools Recruitment Portal Could Cost Local Media Industry Millions
The NS has warned that a national online recruitment website for schools launched by the government last week could divert millions of pounds in advertising revenue away from the local media industry.
Schools Minister Vernon Coaker announced last week that the Schools Recruitment Service portal would save up to £30 million annually if all schools in England signed up.
The Schools Department said the service will, “better match candidates and cut down the costs of advertising and re-advertising posts” from the “costly, long-winded process” of recruiting staff for schools.
Editor of the Northern Echo Peter Barron accused the government of speaking with a forked tongue after receiving a press release about the launch by Hammersmith and Fulham Council last Tuesday.
NS communications director Lynne Anderson said: “The NS is very concerned about public sector advertising portals such as the Schools Recruitment Service which can seriously limit the field of applicants to jobs in the public sector.
“At the same time, they cause serious damage to independent local media by diverting millions of pounds in advertising revenue at a time when the industry is looking to strengthen its position in time for the economic upturn.
“This launch by the Schools Department appears to contradict comments made by schools secretary Ed Balls earlier this year when he described any moves made by local or central government which undermined local media as a ‘“retrograde thing to do’.
“In the context of these supportive comments, we would ask Mr Balls to look very closely at this scheme and consider the damaging effects it will have on local media across the country.”
In July, a House of Commons Select Committee on Scottish Affairs warned that moving public sector recruitment advertising onto portals owned by the public sector was having a “devastating impact on traditional print media,” in its Crisis in the Scottish Press Industry report.
The Committee also expressed concern that the portals were likely to restrict the field of applicants and would not be accessible in rural areas where broadband take-up was limited.
For further information please contact Lynne Anderson on lynne_anderson@newspapersoc.org.uk or 020 763 27421.
Local Media Political Journalists Pay Tribute to Ian Craig
Local media political journalists have paid tribute to a long-standing member of the Newspaper Conference who died at his home last week.
Ian Craig, former political editor of the Manchester Evening News, was described by one former colleague as a “consummate professional” and a “generous friend”.
Conference chairman Matt Chorley, Western Morning News London editor, said: “Ian was a well-known and much respected member of the lobby, and his presence around the corridors of Parliament, with his archive of anecdotes on MPs past and present, will be sorely missed.”
Conference deputy chairman Sam Lister, Belfast Telegraph parliamentary correspondent, added: “Ian was a valued member of the lobby who was liked and respected by all who knew him. He was always willing to share his wide knowledge and expertise with younger reporters. He will be sorely missed.”
Ian interviewed five prime ministers during his newspaper career which he started as a teenager in Liverpool before moving to the MEN where he spent the last 25 years of his career.
Former Conference chairman John Hipwood said: “I knew Ian for a quarter of a century since he moved to London as political editor of the Liverpool Echo, later moving to the Manchester Evening News.
“With his trademark long-striding walk and his navy blue beret, he soon became well known in the Commons and around Whitehall, and he was a key member of the regional lobby.
“Ian was not only a consummate professional with the ability to write sharp and incisive intros, he was also a generous friend to many in the Press Gallery.
“At any gathering, his anecdotes and sense of fun made him great company, and not for nothing was he known as one of ‘The Three Muscadets’.
“He will be sorely missed by everyone who was lucky enough to know him.”
Ian Hernon, of the Liverpool Echo, added: “Ian Craig joined the Parliamentary Lobby in 1982 at the start of the Falklands War. I first met him in the Red Lion after an MoD briefing and he was pleased about a spread he’d done entitled: Where is the Argie Air Force?
“Unfortunately, when it appeared the Argie air force was sinking our ships.
“He was a funny man with a wide range of interests beyond politics – directing short films, copying Vincent Van Gogh’s paintings so that he could better understand his technique, seeking out conspiracies.
“As a nine-year-old he set fire to the Little Orme, Llandudno, while cooking sausages.
“As a journalist he was part of the big-city regional pack. He was old-school, believing that his job was to get the stories over fast and first, usually over the phone between pints. He is greatly missed.”
For further information please contact Paul Sinker on 020 7632 7424 or e-mail sinkerp@newspapersoc.org.uk.
Walker Media Graduate Planners Attend NS Local Media Workshop
The NS held a Local Media Workshop for graduate level planners from top ten media agency Walker Media last week.
Five planners attended the session at the NS which gave the graduates an introduction to resources such as JICREG and Featurelink, and media research projects including Local Matters and the wanted ads Retail, Motors and Property.
They were also shown examples of strong local media ad campaigns, in print and online, which successfully connected with target audiences through local media’s trusted reader relationship, as well as working on a live brief for two national brands.
Walker Media graduate planner buyer Jessica Treasure attended the session. She said: “Much of the information was new to me, and it was useful and interesting. It is great to know what is available at a local level – it will help me with my planning every day.”
For further information please contact Justin Fenton on 020 7632 7469 or e-mail justin_fenton@newspapersoc.org.uk.
IAB Admits Web Adspend Figures Contain £50m Error
The Internet Advertising Bureau and PricewaterhouseCoopers admitted to a £50 million error in their online ad spend figures for the first half of 2009, Revolution magazine reported.
The initial figures released by the IAB claimed that online classified advertising had grown by 10.6 per cent year-on-year to £385.06 million, helping total online ad spend to hit a record £1.75 billion.
However, the IAB and PwC later admitted that the data for classified ads had been revised down after a mistake had been discovered. The revised figures reveal a 3.6 per cent decline for classified advertising to £335.8m.
For further information please contact Paul Sinker on 020 7632 7424 or e-mail sinkerp@newspapersoc.org.uk.
Stationers’ Industry Autumn Event
The Stationers’ and Newspaper Makers’ Company is holding its Industry Group Autumn Event ‘Are Print and Pixels Competitive or Complementary’ at Stationer’s Hall on 9 November.
For more information please click here.
Newsquest Launches Training Scheme for Journalism Students
The Newsquest-owned Herald & Times Group has launched a journalism training scheme that will offer students the chance to get paid work experience placements.
The Herald & Times Editorial Training Scheme launched in partnership with Glasgow Caledonian University and Cardonald College in Glasgow
As well as paid shifts at the Herald & Times, students will also benefit from senior members of the group’s editorial team delivering a range of media workshops at GCU and Cardonald College.
Both the BA Journalism and MA Multimedia Journalism at GCU are accredited by the NCTJ and BJTC.
For further information please contact Paul Sinker on 020 7632 7424 or e-mail sinkerp@newspapersoc.org.uk.