A chill in the air...
Plus: Publishers large and small outline positions on Google ahead of CMA review + insights on the average week in the UK
Good evening,
The What I’ve Been Reading digest returns after a summer break - I would say refreshed but the work/childcare juggle is real during those summer weeks! For those just joining us this a weekly digest of some headlines/reports/news stories/insights/social threads which have crossed my feed during the past week.
I tend to write about a combo of local journalism, digital journalism, social media, digital audiences and plenty more too. As always if you spot something you think I should be including then drop me a line on ed@almaonline.co.uk - it’s always great to hear from those of you subscribed (well above the 200 readers mark now which is nice to see).
Let’s get started with one of my former colleagues at Reach, Natalie Fahy and her team at Nottinghamshire Live who have been making worldwide headlines in a story which is chilling (and not just because Autumn is on the way).
The full inside story on why Nottinghamshire Live has been banned by Reform - Oliver Pridmore - as with a number of places across the country in the May local elections the town/county halls went light-blue with Reform sweeping power. Last week it was confirmed Nottinghamshire County Council’s Reform administration had banned the local newspaper the Nottingham Post, its digital counterpart NottinghamshireLive and also BBC Local Democracy Reporters working as part of the shared service to bring local council coverage to a host of news titles across the county.
It is due to an article about local government reorganisation where the story reported there was disagreement in Reform’s ranks over which way to go over re-organising councils. Council leader Mick Barton claims the Post ‘misrepresented Reform’ and accused them of ‘lacking integrity’ and applied the ban which includes councillors not talking to reporters (this part of the ban has apparently not been applied, it has emerged), council officers not sending press releases or inviting them to events. Editor of NottinghamshireLive, Natalie Fahy, has refuted Cllr Barton’s comments and rightly said they won’t be apologising for what is a straightforward piece of local journalism. But the drawbridge is being pulled up.
News of the ban has even reached Congress, where Reform leader Nigel Farage was speaking about freedom of speech only to be grilled about why his council leader was doing the exact opposite and stifling a free local press. News certainly travels fast in the digital age.
And The Guardian came out strongly in support of the Post, writing
If events in Nottinghamshire were repeated at a national level, this could mean a government refusing to speak to sections of the press or, say, the BBC. This is a chilling prospect. But the local consequences must be taken seriously too. Local news sources, and journalists whose job it is to scrutinise decision-makers, are not a throwback or an adjunct to democracy. They are a vital part of it.
There’s also a good breakdown from Richard Jones, director of journalism, politics and contemporary history for The Conversation on why Reform v Nottingham Post matters.
What I’ve noticed, since returning to front-line reporting with Blog Preston, is how even the most basic of questions being asked of local politicians and institutions will be branded as being negative or misconstrued as an attack. See the Reform narrative in the Post debate of ‘activists rather than journalists’. Everyone these days is a publisher, except they aren’t. An influencer isn’t going to ask a difficult question, because they are relying on the next payday from that brand or organisation.
There appears to have been some wiring gone missing in how local institutions understand they will face questioning and scrutiny, and it is a reporter and editor’s job to ask the difficult questions and give context i.e. something was said to be done last year, but it hasn’t been done. And often, they will publish something before a local council had planned to release it (that’s what makes something news and not PR fluff).
It’s well worth following Natalie on LinkedIn to see the steps she and team are taking - and see if, indeed, Farage does smooth things over as he indicated to Congress he enjoys the ‘peacemaker role’. Which would be rather odd, given it is his foot soldiers who begun the conflict.
Publishers call for CMA to include Gemini in Google investigation - Alice Brooker, Press Gazette - the strategic market status investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority into Google's dominance of search might not sound like riveting reading, but it will be a crucial decision to be made as they received submissions from the likes of DMGT (publishers of the Daily Mail) and a coalition of the Independent Community News Network, Independent Publishers Alliance, Association of Online Publishers and the Independent Media Association representing hundreds of independent publishers across the UK from niche magazine titles to local independent news titles. The most crucial part for me is Google Discover being included in the scope of the CMA probe, for many publishers a much greater monthly audience is coming from Discover than Organic Search and yet it is opaque and volatile.
Insights on British life and the average weel - MailMetroMedia - a quick snapshot insight from the insights team at in their About Time study, shared via Jacqui Merrington, is a really interesting look at how people spend their time. From an enormous fall in the time spent attending cultural events, to more weekend working and my favourite stat, 10.20pm on a Saturday is the peak moment when people feel they are enjoying their week. Reflecting how people feel and the day of the week is important for publishers and their output, be that when publishing certain types of stories, social posts or more.
And finally, a personal piece of writing from me for my colleague
Substack as this week marked five years since the death of my father from pancreatic cancer. I reflected on a death date and how we mark them.
I’m pleased to say we managed to cram around 90 people into my Mum’s house for a Sip and Support afternoon full of tea, cake, coffee, laughter and memories of my Dad. It was lovely. And we raised more than £2,000 for St Raphael’s Hospice who supported us at home as my Dad faced his final weeks of life.
Not a cheery subject to write about, but a very uplifting way to finish this newsletter I feel with doing something positive to remember a very difficult time.
I hope you’re glad to have the digest back in the inbox and do spread the word if you’ve found it a good read.
Keep going.
Ed