Fleet Street swings to Labour | How Footballco is expanding into US
And for those voting in today's UK general election we remind you about what the major parties say (and don't say) about media policy
Good morning, and welcome to your Future of Media newsletter on Thursday, 4 July (election day here in the UK).
As Britain goes to the polls I am going to call the election result for you (based entirely on Fleet Street political endorsements).
Just for a bit of fun, as former BBC swingometer jockey Peter Snow used to say, we've totted up all the UK national newspaper general election endorsements and also added up the circulation of the titles concerned. The result is: 1.85 million in circulation supporting Labour, 1.85 million for the Conservatives and 1.9 million neutral/don't know.
So, if newspapers were votes we’d be heading for a hung parliament in the UK tomorrow with no party having a majority of seats.
Overall this is a great result for Labour which has traditionally contended with a largely hostile UK national press. The most notable endorsements were probably The Sun going Labour in a remarkable reverse ferret and The Times backing no-one at all in its election day leader.
The UK media environment is so diverse now that the era of national newspapers having a major impact on election results is probably over. But given that national newspaper editors must be experts at reflecting the concerns of their readers, the fact that The Sun, FT and Sunday Times have all switched from blue to red in this election must bode well for Starmer.
And if you have yet to make up your mind on who to vote for, our digest of media policy in the manifestos might be some help. Labour has little to say, but there is clear difference between the Liberal Democrats and Tories who are for and against tougher press regulation respectively.
The big unanswered question is whether politicians plan to use the new powers given to them in the Digital Markets Act to tame big tech and level the online playing field for news publishers. For now they are all keeping quiet on this one.
Despite Labour’s lack of policy announcements, it deserves some praise for being the only party not to bombard households with campaign literature misleadingly designed to look like a local newspaper over the last month.
And we have some advice here we should all take heed of from Reach online safety editor Rebecca Whittington who has urged us to play our part in curbing the spread of election misinformation by pausing for thought before we share stuff on social media today.
In non-election news, our new podcast features an interview with the new USA CEO of Footballco who sees a big opportunity to take football content into the land of soccer.
New from Press Gazette
General election 2024 endorsements: Most of Fleet Street votes Labour
"We thought Count Binface was probably the best option but we're willing to give this other fella and his party a chance too."
Lib Dems and Tories defy media critics to continue fake newspaper tactics
“In many parts of the country, the Lib Dem tabloid format is a well-established and trusted local brand in its own right.”
Media manifestos 2024: Labour quiet on press regulation and media policy
Reform UK says it would: “Legislate to stop left-wing bias and politically correct ideology that threatens personal freedom and democracy.”
Stop and think before you share: Reach campaigns against election misinformation
“With the pace of our lives… you see something, you like it, you share it, you move on. It’s very fast moving, and sometimes maybe we don’t stop and think.”
‘What if Vanity Fair and ESPN FC had a baby?’ Footballco sets out US ambitions
Footballco reached one in three soccer fans in the US "without even trying" and is now building a dedicated team.
Previously on Press Gazette
Why male voices dominate when it comes to news on social media
Veteran columnists making more money on Substack after local newspaper exits
Businessweek editor predicts print comeback as 120-page monthly edition launched
Google Sandbox rollout could cost publishers 60% of online advertising revenue
Enemies of the Nigel: BBC joins growing list of Farage media beefs
Who’s suing AI and who’s signing: Publisher deals vs lawsuits with generative AI companies
Our latest podcast
How the world's biggest football title is expanding into USA
Goal, Indivisa and Mundial publisher Footballco was reaching 30 million people in the US without having any meaningful boots on the ground.
But at the start of 2024 Jason Wagenheim arrived as its first CEO for North America, bringing lessons that sports publishing can learn from lifestyle after a long stint at Bustle Digital Group.
Wagenheim told Press Gazette UK editor Charlotte Tobitt about how he is approaching Footballco's two-year runway ahead of the World Cup being held in the US, Canada and Mexico in 2026 as well as the value of going deeper - well beyond traditional match reporting - in an age of algorithms and generative AI.