Earlier this week on HoldtheFrontPage we carried news of the sudden death of long-standing regional lobby correspondent Ian Craig, who until earlier this year was political editor of the Manchester Evening News.
It is always sad when a journalist passes away, but the reaction to Ian's death and the breadth of the tributes that have been paid to him demonstrate that he was someone of very high renown within our profession.
The tributes were led by no less a figure than former premier Tony Blair, and others have appeared on Manchester Online, North West media website How Do, online memorials site Lasting Tribute, and the Newspaper Society website.
As I knew Ian personally from my lobby days, I have also posted my own memories of him on my personal blog.
Here's a selection of what has been said this week about this great regional press journalist.
Tony Blair, former Prime Minister
"It is truly shocking to hear this news. Ian interviewed me on a number of occasions and always struck me as a very talented journalist and a true gentleman. He has been a real credit to his profession, to British politics and to Manchester."
Mike Unger, former editor of the MEN
"Ian's death is a great, great loss. He was one of the great political journalists of his generation, with an outstanding record in both local and national politics. He was quiet, thoughtful, intelligent and hugely calm under pressure. It was a privilege to be friends with him for more than 35 years. And the genuine outpouring of grief and happy memories has been unbelievable. He will be truly missed."
David Hencke, chairman of the Press Gallery
"Ian will be sorely missed in Parliament - he was a great guy- and his sudden death comes as a big shock to everyone in the lobby. I always enjoyed chatting with him and he was incredibly friendly to everyone. He had a great nose for news and kept well abreast of everything happening in Westminster."
John Hipwood, political editor of the Express and Star and former Gallery chairman
"Ian was not only a consummate professional with the ability to write sharp and incisive intros, he was also a generous friend to many in the Press Gallery. At any gathering, his anecdotes and sense of fun made him great company, and not for nothing was he known as one of ‘The Three Muscadets’."
Matt Chorley, chairman of the Newspaper Conference
"Ian was a well-known and much respected member of the lobby, and his presence around the corridors of Parliament, with his archive of anecdotes on MPs past and present, will be sorely missed."
Ian Wylie, former MEN London editor
"Ian was a kind and considerate man who was hugely respected at Westminster. We worked alongside each other for the best part of a quarter of a century and I was also lucky enough to count him as a friend. In all that time we never once had a cross word. The number of shocked colleagues paying tribute to him is a mark of what a lovely man he was."
Thursday 29 October 2009
Wednesday 21 October 2009
Will others follow where Trinity Mirror has led?
A certain amount flak will inevitably be flying in the direction of Trinity Mirror over its decision to take the Birmingham Post weekly. Indeed the NUJ's Chris Morley, who seems to reserve his most colourful invective for matters affecting Trinity Mirror Midlands, has already described it as "the corporate equivalent of self-harm."
But although the move will win the company few friends among journalists, some might applaud Trinity for having bitten the bullet over reducing the frequency of a loss-making title while most other publishers have merely talked about it.
Since the start of the downturn in the autumn of 2008, there have been numerous wild predictions about the industry's future, with claims that up to 650 local titles would close and many regional dailies would become weeklies.
So far, though, only two regional publishers have actually gone down that route - GMG Regional Media by taking the Reading Evening Post twice-weekly, and Trinity Mirror with yesterday's decision.
With a circulation down to 12,076 according to the most recent ABC figures, the Post was always a likely candidate for change of frequency.
Now the deed has finally been done, the big question in the industry will be whether this will prove to be a one-off - or alternatively, whether other publishers will now follow where Trinity and GMG have led.
But although the move will win the company few friends among journalists, some might applaud Trinity for having bitten the bullet over reducing the frequency of a loss-making title while most other publishers have merely talked about it.
Since the start of the downturn in the autumn of 2008, there have been numerous wild predictions about the industry's future, with claims that up to 650 local titles would close and many regional dailies would become weeklies.
So far, though, only two regional publishers have actually gone down that route - GMG Regional Media by taking the Reading Evening Post twice-weekly, and Trinity Mirror with yesterday's decision.
With a circulation down to 12,076 according to the most recent ABC figures, the Post was always a likely candidate for change of frequency.
Now the deed has finally been done, the big question in the industry will be whether this will prove to be a one-off - or alternatively, whether other publishers will now follow where Trinity and GMG have led.
Tuesday 20 October 2009
Speculation mounts over Birmingham dailies
Speculation is mounting in the blogosphere over the future of the Trinity Mirror owned titles in Birmingham.
Nearly two months ago, the company launched a wide-ranging consultation over the future of the Birmingham Post and Mail.
Options under consideration included turning the Post into a weekly title and printing the Mail overnight. It is believed this would save around £1m a year on van runs.
Trinity Mirror is saying nothing officially as yet, but two Birmingham-based blogs are claiming that an announcement on the proposed moves is imminent.
Philip Parkin, operations director of the Birmingham Press Club, writes on his blog that "the coming week promises to be a significant one for The Birmingham Post."
"My spies tell me that this is the week that the announcement about the newspaper’s future is due to be made, with the switch to weekly happening sometime in late November," he says.
Another Birmingham blogger calling himself The Stirrer goes further, saying the announcement will be made today.
"Expect fireworks from newspaper publisher Trinity Mirror in the next 24 hours, with confirmation that the Birmingham Post is going weekly – possibly as early as November 5," he wrote yesterday, claiming staff have already been told that "major changes" on both titles are imminent.
3.30pm UPDATE: It's now official. The Birmingham Post is to go weekly, the Mail is to go to overnight printing, and both their editors have decided to leave. All the details over at HoldtheFrontPage.
Nearly two months ago, the company launched a wide-ranging consultation over the future of the Birmingham Post and Mail.
Options under consideration included turning the Post into a weekly title and printing the Mail overnight. It is believed this would save around £1m a year on van runs.
Trinity Mirror is saying nothing officially as yet, but two Birmingham-based blogs are claiming that an announcement on the proposed moves is imminent.
Philip Parkin, operations director of the Birmingham Press Club, writes on his blog that "the coming week promises to be a significant one for The Birmingham Post."
"My spies tell me that this is the week that the announcement about the newspaper’s future is due to be made, with the switch to weekly happening sometime in late November," he says.
Another Birmingham blogger calling himself The Stirrer goes further, saying the announcement will be made today.
"Expect fireworks from newspaper publisher Trinity Mirror in the next 24 hours, with confirmation that the Birmingham Post is going weekly – possibly as early as November 5," he wrote yesterday, claiming staff have already been told that "major changes" on both titles are imminent.
3.30pm UPDATE: It's now official. The Birmingham Post is to go weekly, the Mail is to go to overnight printing, and both their editors have decided to leave. All the details over at HoldtheFrontPage.
Friday 16 October 2009
Quiet birthday for Newcastle training course
In a similar sort of vein to the previous post, the journalism foundation course run in Newcastle by the Press Association recently turned 40, but there were no birthday celebrations for the renowned training centre.
Sadly for its many distinguished alumni, PA decided against holding a party due to the current economic climate.
The training scheme has been responsible for launching the careers of such regional press luminaries as the Herald's Donald Martin, Adrian Faber from the Express and Star and Brian Aitken of The Journal, in whose newsroom the students are now based.
Other notable graduates include BBC political commentator Andrew Marr, The Sun's newly-appointed political editor Tom Newton Dunn, Radio 4 presenter James Naughtie and Financial Times editor Lionel Barber.
The centre was originally the brainchild of John Gay Davis who became editorial director of Thomson Regional Newspapers, the then owners of Newcastle's Evening Chronicle and Journal, in 1969. He set up two operations, one in Cardiff and the surviving Newcastle operation.
Trinity Mirror later bought the course when they acquired the two Newcastle papers in 1995 before Press Association took over the reins in 2006.
Sadly for its many distinguished alumni, PA decided against holding a party due to the current economic climate.
The training scheme has been responsible for launching the careers of such regional press luminaries as the Herald's Donald Martin, Adrian Faber from the Express and Star and Brian Aitken of The Journal, in whose newsroom the students are now based.
Other notable graduates include BBC political commentator Andrew Marr, The Sun's newly-appointed political editor Tom Newton Dunn, Radio 4 presenter James Naughtie and Financial Times editor Lionel Barber.
The centre was originally the brainchild of John Gay Davis who became editorial director of Thomson Regional Newspapers, the then owners of Newcastle's Evening Chronicle and Journal, in 1969. He set up two operations, one in Cardiff and the surviving Newcastle operation.
Trinity Mirror later bought the course when they acquired the two Newcastle papers in 1995 before Press Association took over the reins in 2006.
Thursday 15 October 2009
Horrocks departs without fanfare
The announcement last month that Paul Horrocks was leaving after 12 years as editor of the Manchester Evening News was predictably one of our biggest stories of recent months, although interestingly, it got fewer page views on HTFP than our tale about the departure the MEN's last staff photographer, Mark Waugh, and only a few more than the one about assistant editor Robert Ridley quitting to become a driving instructor.
At the time of the announcement, no date was given for Mr Horrocks' actual departure, with the MEN Media press office merely saying it would be "some time in October" and promising to let us know more nearer the time.
As it happened, that time came and went without any further word on the matter. After receiving an out-of-office message from Paul this morning, we checked back with the press office who confirmed that in fact he left on Friday.
Doesn't it all seem a tad low-key for someone who has been such a high-profile figure in the industry over the past decade?
At the time of the announcement, no date was given for Mr Horrocks' actual departure, with the MEN Media press office merely saying it would be "some time in October" and promising to let us know more nearer the time.
As it happened, that time came and went without any further word on the matter. After receiving an out-of-office message from Paul this morning, we checked back with the press office who confirmed that in fact he left on Friday.
Doesn't it all seem a tad low-key for someone who has been such a high-profile figure in the industry over the past decade?
Credit where credit's due
The Newspaper Society's weekly newsletter arrived in our inbox this morning with an item about the local media fighting for open justice.
"Media commentator Roy Greenslade has highlighted recent instances in which local media journalists reporting on cases in criminal courts have used the updated guidelines on reporting restrictions," it read.
The piece was a reference to two stories in which London weeklies successfully argued against the imposition of Section 39 Orders under the Children and Young Persons Act which would have prevented newspapers from identifying the perpetrators of crime.
As Roy himself acknowledged in his blogpost, it was in fact HTFP which orginally "highlighted" both of these tales.
"Media commentator Roy Greenslade has highlighted recent instances in which local media journalists reporting on cases in criminal courts have used the updated guidelines on reporting restrictions," it read.
The piece was a reference to two stories in which London weeklies successfully argued against the imposition of Section 39 Orders under the Children and Young Persons Act which would have prevented newspapers from identifying the perpetrators of crime.
As Roy himself acknowledged in his blogpost, it was in fact HTFP which orginally "highlighted" both of these tales.
Wednesday 14 October 2009
A job too far
Credit crunch, recession, economic downturn - sadly all expressions which feature heavily in today's news.
As a result, job hunting within the press and media industry has become increasingly difficult for those seeking career progression or a new, post-redundancy job.
It seems, however, that such pressures and constraints aren't weighing too heavily on the mind of one regional press job candidate.
Check out this "tweet" from Worcester News editor Kevin Ward, posted earlier today. It seems that some people out there are still benefiting from the luxury of choice!!
As a result, job hunting within the press and media industry has become increasingly difficult for those seeking career progression or a new, post-redundancy job.
It seems, however, that such pressures and constraints aren't weighing too heavily on the mind of one regional press job candidate.
Check out this "tweet" from Worcester News editor Kevin Ward, posted earlier today. It seems that some people out there are still benefiting from the luxury of choice!!
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