news in brief...


FALL IN PROFITS AT TRINITY MIRROR Trinity Mirror’s operating profit fell £16.4 million to £82.2 million for 2015 on sales which were down £44.6 million to £592.7 million. Digital revenue increased by £10.4 million for the year to £42.8 million. Revenue from print still provides the majority of the publisher’s income; this declined from £521.6 million to £458.9 million.


ROUTLEDGE JOINS HUDDERSFIELD TITLE Veteran political journalist Paul Routledge has joined the Huddersfield Examiner as a weekly columnist. He is writing for the Trinity Mirror-owned title every Wednesday. Routledge was made redundant by the Daily Mirror last year but continues to write for the paper on a freelance basis.


BARRON BOWS OUT AS ECHO EDITOR Peter Barron is leaving after 17 years as editor of the Northern Echo. He is the longest-serving editor in the history of the title. Barron began his career on the Scunthorpe Telegraph and joined the Echo as a reporter in 1984. He became editor of the Hartlepool Mail in 1997 and returned to the Echo in January 1999 as editor.


BETTELEY WINS WELSH AWARDS Weekly newspaper reporter Chris Betteley was named Journalist of the Year at the 2016 Wales Media Awards. The Cambrian News journalist also won Print News Reporter and Political Reporter awards at the ceremony in Cardiff and received glowing comments from all the judges.


BOLTON SUCCEEDS IN LONG FOI BATTLE Bolton News has won a three-year campaign to name two councillors who failed to pay their council tax, which was uncovered by a Freedom of Information request. Reporter Dale Haslam discovered via Fol that two councillors had not paid their council tax for two years in a row, only doing so when threatened with court action.


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Photographer jobs cut in Local World ‘flexible’ plan


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It smacks of budget cutting without a care for quality of the content


ore local photographers look set to lose their jobs as newspapers in the Local World group shift towards relying on reader photos and reporters taking pictures.


The cuts follow Local World’s takeover by Trinity Mirror.


Journalists have been told they are moving to a new “model”, which will make use of the increasing number of photos and videos uploaded by members of the public to social media.


A spokesperson for Local World said: “With more sources of copyright-free material becoming available and our journalists having technology that allows them to take photos and video, some centres are moving to models that give them the flexibility to cope better with changing and varying demand.”


The NUJ believes that the jobs of all photographic staff in Essex and Kent are set to go and, at the daily Leicester Mercury, all six photographers’ jobs are at risk.


At the Nottingham Post, it is proposed that the five staff photographers will be reduced to


one full-time content curator and two part- time photographers.


Two photographers are set to go from the Derby Telegraph, one from the Uttoxeter Advertiser and one from the Burton Mail. Two jobs will be created. The plan means the daily Burton newspaper will have no photographer.


At the Whitstable Times, Herne Bay Times, Canterbury Times, Faversham Times, Isle of Thanet Gazette, Dover Express, Folkestone Herald and Ashford Herald, all four photographers are set to go.


NUJ national organiser Laura Davison said: “Photographers have stuck with the company through two changes of ownership in three years, only to be told their skills are no longer needed within a few short months of Trinity Mirror’s takeover.


“It smacks of budget cutting without a care for the quality of the content or the fact that local communities will be robbed of their photographers to record events such as Remembrance Sunday, sports days and news events. Do we really want the mourners at the local war memorial to be captured by people taking selfies?”


INVESTIGATORY POWERS BILL CRITICISED


he government should do “further work” on the Investigatory Powers Bill to convince journalists it will not be detrimental to their work, according to Andy Burnham, the shadow home secretary. The Investigatory Powers Bill was approved by MPs at


its second reading by 281 votes to 15.


Labour and the SNP abstained and warned they could vote against the government at future stages unless it ironed out problems with the bill. The position of opposition parties and some of


the unease on the Tory backbenches could force the government to grant concessions as the bill passes through the Commons.


While agreeing with the fundamentals of the bill, Burnham said: “There is also the question of


journalists, and the NUJ believes the bill weakens existing provisions. Clause 68, the only reference to journalists in the entirety of the bill, sets out a judicial process for the revelation of a source. The concern is journalists are wide open to other powers in the bill.”


Reporter becomes writer in residence


UJ member Anthony Quinn has been chosen as one of two writers in residence in Libraries NI, Northern Ireland’s library service. Anthony provided workshops, seminars, clinics and readings during March, which was Creativity Month. He said he was delighted at the role, and met “lovely” groups of writers and readers.


“I enjoyed sharing what I know about the world of writing and hopefully inspiring local readers to some literary success,” he said.


Crime writer Anthony is a reporter at the Tyrone Times, based in Cookstown, Co Tyrone.


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