Future of Media Awards shortlist | Foreign ownership law sinks Mail Telegraph bid
Plus the latest on Evening Standard moves to phase out daily print edition as staff are 'dismayed' by redundancy terms on offer
Welcome to your daily newsletter from Press Gazette on Friday 12 July, 2024.
If you need some inspiration about how to fire up your media business at this time of “national renewal”, look no further.
Today we unveil the finalists for our Future of Media Awards which celebrate the best digital journalism products and innovation anywhere in the world.
The full list of finalists is well worth a browse if you want to see what best-in-class websites, podcasts, apps and digital newsroom techniques look like in 2024. We also showcase commercial innovation and reader revenue strategies.
We will find out the winners at the awards dinner on 12 September which happens right after our flagship Future of Media Technology Conference. Full details on ticket bookings here.
We also have the latest on the Telegraph and Spectator sale which is back to square one as Redbird IMI seeks to recoup the £600m it valued the titles at when it paid off the Barclay family's debt to Lloyds.
The ban on foreign state investment passed by the last government has been cited as one reason why DMG Media has pulled out of the race.
Meanwhile, the Welsh Parliament has voted to continue subsidising the nation's big local media groups by publishing public notices about council tax in the print editions of local newspapers. While larger local media companes are glad to have defended this principle, smaller web-only publishers say public money should not be spent propping up declining legacy media outfits.
Also in Wales there is an intriguing case of a publisher talking about confidential sources. NationCymru has said national parliament member Hannah Blethyn was not the source of a screenshot apparently taken from her phone of a message group in which the nation's first minister said he would be deleting messages to avoid releasing them under FoI rules.
Jobs of the Week
Noir Consulting - .NET Developer - Radio Station Group - Cheshunt
LRP Media Group - Education Reporter - Palm Beach Gardens (USA)
Herdt Consulting Inc - Proposal Coordinator/Technical Writer - Bethesda (USA)
New from Press Gazette
Future of Media Awards shortlist 2024: ‘Lighting the way to sustainable future for journalism’
“The finalists provide a snapshot of publishers who are lighting the way to a sustainable future for quality journalism in the digital age.”
Telegraph sale: DMG Media blames ban on foreign investment as it exits race
“DMGT believes the new statutory regime governing the ownership of UK newspapers is overly restrictive, and could curtail our ability to raise capital for our news publishing and other media businesses — both now and in the future.”
Threat of Welsh council tax notices reform that sparked newspaper revenue fears is over
Public notice income provides a lifeline to local newspapers - but not all publishers benefit.
‘Dismay’ at Standard over redundancy terms as daily print phased out
“So there is not a large pot of money sitting in the bank. We have negative working capital.”
News in brief
CNN chief executive Mark Thompson has told staff that the organisation is cutting around 100 jobs, equivalent to approximately 3% of its total workforce. (Press Gazette)
National World has bought two sports news brands in the past two months as it puts more focus on “high value, specialist content” especially in sports beyond football. The latest acquisition is the independent Serious About Rugby League website. (Press Gazette)
Nigel Farage is set to return to GB News after being elected as an MP and plans to broadcast three times a week from its Westminster studio. (Financial Times)
New Daily Beast chief executive Ben Sherman has told staff that prior to cuts made last month the brand had been on track to lose $9m this year, and that it was at one point "hours away" from being sold to a private equity company. (Hollywood Reporter)
Politico owner Axel Springer is reportedly in talks paving the way for a sell-off of its fast-growing classified advertising websites which include jobs platform Stepstone and property site Aviv. (Financial Times)
Welsh news website NationCymru says Hannah Blethyn was not the source of screenshotted phone messages which saw her sacked as a minister in the Welsh government. (NationCymru)
Prince Harry will appear in an ITV documentary about phone hacking to discuss his “mission to continue his fight to expose the illegal tactics of Britain’s tabloid press”. (The Independent)
Russia has banned the English-language online newspaper The Moscow Times from working within the country by labelling it “undesirable” because of its coverage of the war in Ukraine, meaning it is a criminal offence to cooperate with it. Its founder said: “Of course, we will continue with our work as usual: independent journalism. That's a crime in Putin's Russia.” (The Moscow Times)
Previously on Press Gazette
Top newsbrands for converting readers to subscribers revealed
Press Gazette publishes ultimate guide to reader conversion and monetisation
Top 50 UK news websites in May: ITV growth sees broadcaster re-enter top ten
Press Gazette live
Our flagship event the Future of Media Technology Conference and Awards takes place on 12 September on the Hilton Bankside hotel in London. It provides publishers with a masterclass on the big technology themes impacting our business and is also an unrivalled networking opportunity.
Full agenda and booking details here.
Latest podcast
Setting goals for US expansion with Footballco’s first North America CEO
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.