1. Cultural Secretary pledges to be a 'champion of journalism'
The UK Government's Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan has pledged to 'be a champion of journalism in every way I can' and has vowed to ensure the journalism industry 'thrives in the digital age' as a matter of priority.
The Culture Secretary made these ultra-important commitments in an article run by newspapers across the UK on 31 October to mark the start of
Journalism Matters week – an annual campaign that aims to highlight and celebrate the journalism industry.
In her article, Donelan reiterated previous UK Government pledges to give the new Digital Markets Unit (DMU) the power to step in to solve pricing disputes between news outlets and big tech platforms such as Meta and Google, and to repeal Section 40 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013.
She wrote: 'Like countless readers, I am really proud to live in a country that has such a flourishing media scene, starting with the 850 local news titles across the UK, including the
Melksham Independent News in my own constituency. These local newspapers act as our neighbourhood watch. They have their ear to the ground of their communities – holding local public services' feet to the fire, monitoring what is happening in the local courts and providing a valuable platform for causes and community groups.
'But we also need the reporters and editors who work at national press and broadcast outlets, and who are just as vital to our democracy. Their front pages lead the national conversation. Their presenters ask the questions to which we all want answers. And their investigations shape our society by exposing wrongdoing.'
The Culture Secretary told us that she was going to be a champion of journalism in every way she could, explaining: 'For me, that starts with one of the most pressing things in my in-tray: making sure that this industry thrives in the digital age'. She went on to note that 'big tech has swallowed up much of the advertising market and contributed to the closure of too many newsrooms'.
Vowing to press ahead with the National Action Plan to tackle the abuse of journalists, she added: 'Working alongside industry partners, the police and others, we are committed to reducing the number of attacks and threats against journalists, and ensuring those responsible are brought to justice. I intend to do my bit to help this essential industry thrive. But newspapers need your support, too. Ultimately it is you – the readers – who keep your local
Gazette,
Inquirer or
Bugle up and running. When you buy a paper or visit a news website, you are doing so much more than getting up-to-speed on the latest news or gossip. You are supporting an institution that keeps this country running'.
2. National World could well launch a bid for Reach plc
National World, which owns
The Scotsman,
Scotland on Sunday, the
Edinburgh Evening News and a number of Scottish weekly newspapers, appears to be considering a takeover of larger rival publishing group Reach plc. Reach is the parent company of a major publishing group which includes the
Daily Record,
Sunday Mail, the
Scottish Daily Express and
Daily Mirror, plus hundreds of local newspapers including a number of Scottish weeklies.
National World, which is run by the former chief executive of the Mirror Group and
News of the World editor, David Montgomery, issued a statement on 3 November declaring it was 'at the early stages of exploring a possible offer for the entire issued and to be issued share capital of Reach'. However, it emphasised that it had made no contact with the Reach board.
Publicly-listed National World, which has a market value of £50m, reported revenue of £43.5m for the six months to the end of July this year against revenues at Reach of £297m.
A spokesperson for Reach pointed out: 'The board of Reach notes the announcement by National World that it is considering a possible offer for the entire issued and to be issued share capital of the company. The board of Reach confirms that it has not received an approach from National World'.
Daily Business reports: 'David Montgomery, chair of National World, has declared that his company's strategy is to grow by acquisition. He sold his previous local newspaper group, Local World, a collection of about 100 local newspapers, to Reach in 2015 for £220m. In a 2020 deal with the administrator of Johnston Press, he paid just £10m for what had been renamed JPI Media – the owner of local and regional papers including
The Scotsman,
Falkirk Herald,
Sheffield Star,
Portsmouth News,
Lancashire Post and the
Sunderland Echo'.
Under Takeover Panel rules, National World has until 5pm on 1 December to make a firm offer for Reach. Industry sources say US media giant Gannett, whose UK subsidiary, Newsquest, owns
The Herald,
The National,
Glasgow Times and
Greenock Telegraph, plus a number of Scottish weeklies, could also be interested in Reach.
David Montgomery was previously the chief executive of the Mirror Group – taking over in 1992 following the death of its notorious former owner Robert Maxwell. Montgomery stepped down in 1999. Mirror Group then merged with Trinity to become Trinity Mirror before renaming itself Reach in 2018.
The potential takeover of Reach by National World comes as UK regional newspaper publishers struggle with a downturn in digital advertising, soaring print costs and calls from staff for improved pay and conditions as the cost-of-living crisis mounts.
Montgomery set up National World in 2019 as a vehicle to drive consolidation in the ailing UK regional newspaper sector. Earlier this year, National World failed in a bid to buy Archant, the Norwich-based regional newspaper and magazine publisher that owns titles including the
Eastern Daily Press and London's
Ham & High Express. Archant was instead acquired by Newsquest, the UK's second biggest regional publisher.
3. Michael Gove makes a personal commitment to press freedom
Michael Gove, back in business as a Cabinet member of the Rishi Sunak UK Government, delivered a trenchant personal commitment to press freedom as guest speaker at the London Press Club's presentation of annual awards for excellence in journalism.
Gove, who began an earlier journalistic career as a graduate trainee at
The Press and Journal (P&J), told guests: 'What keeps politicians honest, what keeps democracy alive, what ensures that this country works, and is a country of which we can be proud, is free speech and free press and free inquiry. And any attempt by government through regulators or through other means to check, undermine or throttle that spirit of free inquiry goes against the very foundations of our democracy. Free speech does not mean anything, but it does mean the freedom to say things that are sometimes painful to those in power and sometimes difficult for others to hear'.
Gove, a former assistant editor of
The Times, returned to the top ranks of government when Rishi Sunak appointed him as Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and Minister for Intergovernmental Relations.
He added: 'I am grateful for the chance to face you as a member of Rishi's Cabinet. Grateful also after terrible months of turbulence, after a rolling news buffet and all you can eat story extravaganza, that boring is back. The public has had the most amazing feast of events, of controversy, of change, of an almost convulsive 24/7 news cycle eating up every second of their attention. Now is the time I think, certainly from the view of the government, for nerves to settle, for us to get back to the business of government in a quiet way which ensures that others get the headlines'. And he joked: 'I have to apologise to all of you here for our utter determination to try to be as dull as possible'.
After leaving The P&J during a strike by NUJ journalists on the daily and its sister paper, the
Evening Express, Gove became a researcher and reporter at Scottish Television and a reporter for BBC Television before ultimately joining
The Times.
An MP since 2005, and serving under four Prime Ministers, Gove has held numerous top political positions and gave evidence to the UK Leveson judicial public inquiry into the culture, practices and ethics of the British press. Gove and his wife,
Daily Mail columnist Sarah Vine, divorced earlier this year.
4. Scottish journalists shortlisted in British Journalism Awards
Three Scottish journalists and a BBC Scotland team are shortlisted in this year's British Journalism Awards – widely recognised as the Oscars of UK journalism. The awards are organised and run by
Press Gazette and this year have drawn a record 840 entries. It is very encouraging to see Peter Ranscombe, a regular freelance contributor to
Scottish Field magazine, featuring right up there with the cream of British journalism – doing battle with five others shortlisted in the Personal Finance category.
Peter is a freelance journalist and copywriter who took over as
Scottish Field's personal finance columnist in 2020. He also served as the magazine's wine columnist and drinks blogger between 2014 and 2022.
Martin Williams, who writes for both
The Herald and
The Herald on Sunday, is vying with seven other entrants in the Local Journalism category. And Edinburgh-born Pippa Crerar, fresh from being voted London Press Club's Journalist of the Year, is shortlisted in the Politics Journalism category for her work while political editor of the
Daily Mirror. She has since joined
The Guardian as its political editor.
In the Energy and Environment category, a team from BBC Scotland are shortlisted for their documentary
Dirty Business. The team members are Liam McDougall, Samantha Poling, Calum Grewar and Shelley Jofre.
The head of UK news at
ITV News, Amber de Botton, who is joining Rishi Sunak's new administration as its director of communications, is shortlisted twice. She is one of a team of four from ITV shortlisted in the Politics Journalism category, and one of an ITV team of four in the running for the Investigation of the Year award for its coverage of the Partygate scandal.
This year's winners will be announced in a ceremony at the London Hilton Park Lane on 15 December. Press Gazette's editor-in-chief and chairman of the judges, Dominic Ponsford, told
Scottish Review: 'The judges had an incredibly tough time deciding who should make it through to the shortlists. With 50 entries in some categories, even making it to a shortlist of 10 is an amazing achievement. These finalists provide an inspiring reminder of why we should all be proud to be part of the British journalism industry. They join the greats of our business, a pantheon of heroes who have changed the world for the better through honest journalism'.
You can access the full shortlists on the
Press Gazette's website.
5. Another top award for Scotland's Pippa Crerar
Scots-born Pippa Crerar, who has become the new political editor of
The Guardian, was voted Journalist of the Year in the London Press Club annual awards for her work as the Daily Mirror's political editor – producing scoop after scoop.
It was the infamous Partygate debacle that set her aside from the pack. She time and time again revealed examples of lockdown parties attended by Downing Street staff, MPs and Prime Minister Boris Johnson himself. The judges described Pippa's output as 'a classic case of brave and ground-breaking journalism on the most important political story of the year'.
The full list of winners is:
Journalist of the Year
Winner: Pippa Crerar,
Daily Mirror
Business Journalist
Winner: Ruth Sunderland, group business editor of the
Daily Mail and
Mail on Sunday
Sports Journalist
Winner: Jonathan Liew,
The Guardian
Broadcaster
Winner: Paul Brand, UK editor of
ITV News
Multimedia Journalist
Winner: Jerome Starkey, defence editor of
The Sun
Scoop of the Year
Joint winners:
Mail on Sunday and
The Sunday Times
Young Journalist of the Year
sponsored by The Journalists' Charity
Winner: Noa Hoffman,
The Sun
Hugh Cudlipp Award for campaigning and investigative journalism sponsored by the British Journalism Review
Winner: Partygate scandal,
Daily Mirror
Edgar Wallace Award
Winner: Cartoonist Stanley McMurtry, known as MAC
Sunday Newspaper of the Year
Winner:
The Sunday Times
Daily Newspaper of the Year
Winner:
The Daily Mirror
Should you wish to get in touch with me, please email me at: mackay858@btinternet.com
Caithness-born Hamish Mackay is now in his 57th year as an occasional/sometimes regular contributor to the UK's exceedingly diverse media market
