Top 50 regional news sites | Private Eye cartoonist quits over Hamas threat
And Noel Clarke libel bid against Guardian proceeds to next stage
Good morning and welcome to your daily media news briefing on Friday, 3 November.
Our latest data trawl on UK regional news websites reveals some grounds for optimism in a rather beleaguered corner of the news vineyard.
Half of the top 50 UK local news websites grew their audience in September, with blockbuster sites from Reach like the Manchester Evening News still dominating the top ten.
Despite this traffic growth, online advertising spend fell 14% in the first half of this year in the regional press according to AA/WARC figures released this week.
This helps explain why regional publishers are eagerly exploring paid online content strategies and also making newsroom redundancies.
The paradox for these publishers is that content which is compelling enough to persuade readers to pay requires serious investment. They are going to need to spend money to make money if they are going to stop the spiral of decline.
Today we also have the latest on Noel Clarke’s legal battle with The Guardian. The actor has won a preliminary ruling meaning the trial will be decided on more damaging interpretations of The Guardian articles.
Ultimately though, it will be down to The Guardian to prove that the widespread allegations of sexual misconduct against Clarke it published were true.
Press Gazette is hosting 70 senior media leaders at South Place Hotel in London next Thursday (9 November) for an essential briefing on how to get ahead of the big disruptive trends in media and publishing for next year.
Keynote speakers include Google MD for platforms and partnerships Chris Thorogood and Newsquest CEO Henry Faure Walker. Delegates will also take part in a series of round-table discussions in which they are invited to share insights on how they can increase revenue and so invest more in journalism next year.
This event is invite-only, but as we have added another table a handful of delegate places are now available.
Please email richard.jamieson@ns-mediagroup.com if you are in a leadership position at an online publisher and would like to attend.
The Future of Media Trends is free to attend thanks for support from our sponsors: Arc XP, Permutive, Jobbio, Human Made, EX.CO, Vindicia and Lineup Systems.
Jobs of the week
AIP Publishing is recruiting an associate publisher, portfolio strategy (remote)
Carat is looking for a manager, commerce and retail media (New York)
PX Inc is recruiting a senior publisher sales director (New York)
More media jobs from Press Gazette powered by Amply here
New from Press Gazette
Regional digital top 50: Half of UK’s biggest local news websites grew audience in September
Fastest-growing was Iliffe Media’s Kent Online whose audience was up 610% year-on-year to 2.4 million people, according to data from Ipsos iris. (A significant part of this growth will be due to the title moving to tagged reporting data in August 2023.)
Private Eye cartoonist quits after silence from mag colleagues over Twitter threat
Rockman told Press Gazette that, in the wake of the 2015 Al Qaeda attack on French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, publishers “should care” about death threats directed toward their cartoonists.
High Court ruling on meaning clears way for Noel Clarke libel trial versus Guardian
Mr Justice Johnson said in a judgment published on Wednesday that each of the articles cited in the libel claim were defamatory of Clarke at common law, and that they were facts rather than expressions of opinion.
News in brief
Private Eye has commented on the departure of cartoonist Zoom Rockman from the magazine, saying it "is entirely up to him but it is a matter of regret for us". (Press Gazette)
Bellingcat founder Eliot Higgins has revealed how a SLAPP lawsuit brought by Russian warlord Yevgeny Prigozhin against him personally over a series of tweets sent in 2021 cost him £70,000 to defend (even though Prigozhin was sanctioned at the time). (The Guardian)
NUJ members at BBC Local have been asked to vote on an offer brokered through Acas. They have already walked out on strike for four days in opposition to local radio cuts. The offer covers compulsory redundancies, redeployment, pay protection and workload. (NUJ)
Condé Nast is cutting 5% of its staff, or some 270 people, chief executive Roger Lynch has told employees. Lynch cited digital advertising pressures, social media traffic declines and audiences moving to short-form video as reasons. (New York Times)
A News Media Association poll of 30 UK editors found: 97% fear AI-generated misinformation ahead of the next election, 90% see Google and Meta as an existential threat to journalism, and 86% think BBC plans to cut local radio and invest online pose a threat to independent local journalism.
More than 70 journalism associations and unions globally have called on the Israeli government to take explicit steps to protect journalists in Gaza amid an "unprecedented" death rate of more than one a day since the war began. (IFJ)
Google will soon pay publishers on AdSense by impression, moving away from paying by clicks, but says it doesn't expect this to change how much they earn. "This update will provide a more uniform way for paying publishers for their ad space..." (Google)
The New York Times is expanding its 24/7 Express news team including in Seoul and London, resulting in growth of a third by next year. "When readers hear about an event, we want them to come to The New York Times to learn about it." (NYT)
Nadhim Zahawi has told Times Radio: "It would be an honour to serve as chairman of something as wonderful as The Daily Telegraph but ultimately it's between the Barclays and their bankers." Zahawi said he put the Barclays, who want to regain control of the paper, in touch with investors. (Times Radio)
Organic revenues at Reuters News were up 3% in Q3, "driven by a contractual price increase and digital advertising". Overall at Thomson Reuters, revenue rose 1% in the quarter and profits were higher than expected at 82 cents per share. (Reuters)
Jewish News published an anonymous opinion piece from a Guardian employee looking for a new job in part due to the paper's coverage of the Israel-Hamas war. They wrote: "Now is not the time for colleagues to dismiss Jewish pain or publish inflammatory op-eds..." The piece was later updated with a correction over a line about someone pointing to an Israeli flag burning and laughing, saying this "relates to a comment made by a visiting schoolchild at the Guardian, not by a Guardian staff member". (Jewish News)
A group of US financial journalists are "teaming up with investors to launch a trading firm that is designed to trade on market-moving news unearthed by its own investigative reporting". (Financial Times)
A US court has ruled a reporter's source protection privilege continues after their death and extends to their newspaper after an attempt to seize the devices of killed Las Vegas journalist Jeff German. (The Signals Network)
The publisher of Alabama newspaper Atmore News and one of its reporters have been arrested and charged over an investigation into a school board’s payments to former employees. Officials said the article was based on confidential grand jury evidence. (Washington Post)
The Herald in Scotland has launched a "major expansion" of its business and economic coverage with a new monthly supplement that will "get to grips with the big issues facing Scotland, shine a spotlight on the nation’s entrepreneurs". (The Herald)
Ex-Reach audience and content director Ed Walker and Lancs Live editor Luke Beardsworth have teamed up, alongside comms specialist Shirah Bamber, to launch audience development consultancy Alma. They will work with media brands and other sectors. (Alma)
Podcast 59: From subscriptions to membership at Elle UK
Elle UK editor Kenya Hunt talks to Press Gazette about why she hopes readers will pay £150 a year to become fashion industry insiders as members of Elle Collective.
She also talks about the future of magazines, diversity and why magazine editors have a duty to present images of female beauty responsibly.
Previously on Press Gazette
Why Google’s generative AI gamble is a game of chicken it could lose
At 1,500 stories per day, Mail Online is UK’s most prolific news website
As digital subs overtake print at i, editor Oliver Duff explains why future is bright for title
Founders leave as investors take over Insidethegames.biz sport news site
Sun editor Newton warns of ‘privacy law’ creep and trumpets Huw Edwards reporting