Council Publications Are "A Threat to Democracy"

MPs urge councils to support local media, not compete with it

Council publications such as Around Ealing and H&F News, billed by Hammersmith and Fulham Council as "Hammersmith & Fulham’s leading newspaper" have come under fire this week.

MP Ed Balls has spoken out against Councils that "undermine local media outlets by trying to compete for readers and advertising revenue with their own publications and websites."

The credit crunch has hit local newspapers hard with the Ealing Times becoming the first casualty. Trinity Mirror, who publish the Ealing Gazette (and its free sister-paper the Ealing Leader) have cut many jobs and centralised journalists and photographers who cover a huge area, including Surrey, Buckinghamshire, and north, south, east and west London.

At a Newspaper Conference event in Westminster, the Newspaper Society questioned moves by local authorities, which it said were "increasingly seeking to supplant the role of local newspapers by producing publications and websites offering ‘independent’ local news and competing head-to-head with local media companies for third party advertising revenues."

The Society warned that in some areas, such moves could result in a council publication becoming the only source of local news and posing  a threat to democracy.

Around Ealing, Ealing Council's monthly publication currently claims "a wider circulation and readership than any other local publication in circulation." For any businesses, local or otherwise, who wishing to advertise in the local authority magazine the charges start at £300 for an eighth of a page one-off advertisement rising to £2,100 for a single back cover.

Basic listings on Ealingtoday.co.uk, ActonW3.com, ShepherdsbushW12.com, HammersmithToday.co.uk are free for local businesses. Enhanced listings of up to 75 words plus a picture or logo are available for 6 months at £40 plus VAT or £75 plus VAT for the year. 

The most expensive package on the EalingToday local news website is less than 10% of what it costs to advertise on the back page of Around Ealing.

Andy Slaughter, the MP for Ealing, Acton and Shepherd's Bush, has spoken in the House of Commons this week about the issue.

He thinks the expansion of such publications is a threat to democracy: "[Local Authority publications] provide desperately unfair competition. Local authorities have huge resources with which to pay the hidden costs. They pay two or three times the amount to the journalist, and their terms and conditions are marvellous compared with those of the local press. All the costs of distribution, overheads and so forth are hidden. We are talking about hundreds, if not millions, of pounds of expenditure on promotional activity of such a kind. That is bad."

He continued: "Although it is right to say that the recession and unfair competition are the reason for the decline of the local press, the seeds were sown some time ago. The fact that Trinity Mirror and other publishers put their shareholders before their journalists and readers means that when one picks up a local paper, it no longer is that.

"There are a couple of pages of local news, and then one suddenly finds oneself in... what is effectively syndicated and generalised news. For that reason, sales inevitably go down. The successful newspapers that remain in London are the ones that contain genuinely local news that people wish to read."

Mr Slaughter also slammed publications produced by local authorities. "All local authorities publish what is effectively political propaganda to keep the ruling party in power. Probably the only thing on which I agree with Boris Johnson is getting rid of The Londoner. He did that because it was absolutely useless.

"In an aggressive marketing campaign, Hammersmith and Fulham council can say, “Your local press sells 3,000 copies a week, we can deliver 80,000 copies free through your door, and we will give free personal ads and we will undercut any of the advertising rates.” Of course, that will lead to the demise of the local press. One may say that that is sad, but it is the way of the world."

Mr Balls said at the Newspaper Conference: "It is vital for the identity and aspirations of these communities that local newspapers are strong and flourish…While there are clear competition rules about what public and private sectors can do, I think any local area which is making decisions which are undermining, actively, local newspapers, I think that would be a retrograde thing to do.

"The strong message from the centre of government is that all ministers should make sure they’re doing everything they can to support regional media, which is well-read and trusted…and provides a vital service."

Regional media are "the most trusted source of advice and information on what’s going on in local communities," he added. 

January 22, 2009