news
More people avoid the news as they find it relentlessly depressing
NEARLY four in 10 people in a study of 20 countries are avoiding the news because it is relentless and depressing, according to the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. In the UK, that figure is 46 per cent. In its Digital News Report, the institute
found that 39 per cent of people actively avoided the news – the highest level since the report began 12 years ago. The previous high was in 2022 when 38 per cent avoided the news. The proportion of people in the UK saying they actively avoid
the news sometimes or often is up from 24 per cent in 2017 to 46 per cent this year. This year’s proportion is the same as in 2022 although there was some improvement to 41 per cent in 2023. Worryingly, just 25 per cent of the 2,017 UK respondents to the survey said that they never avoid the news. Across a broader study of 47 countries, the UK was ninth highest
for news avoidance. The top two ‘avoiders’ were Bulgaria (60 per cent) and Greece (59 per cent). The biggest increases in news avoidance were seen in
countries including Ireland (up by 10 percentage points to 44 per cent), Spain (a rise of eight percentage points to 37 per cent), Italy (up seven percentage points to 36 per cent), Germany (an increase of five percentage points to 37 per cent), Finland (a five percentage points rise to 26 per cent) and the US (a five percentage points rise to 43 per cent). In the UK, interest in news has almost halved
since 2015, with a fall from 70 per cent saying they were extremely or very interested in news to 38
per cent this year. The UK saw one of the biggest drops in percentage points, alongside Spain (down from 85 per cent in 2015 to 52 per cent). The report suggested that increased use of smartphones, push notifications and algorithm-based social media feeds could be fuelling the feelings of news overload. The report said that many news organisations around the
world have introduced ‘user needs’ models aimed at making the news more accessible and engaging by supplementing news updates with stories that “educate, inspire, provide perspective, connect, or entertain”.
LDRs angry overunfair pay rise
THE NUJ has condemned publisher National World’s failure to offer a fair pay rise to journalists providing news stories including on corruption and council scrutiny to local communities. Local democracy reporters (LDRs) at National World are funded by the BBC as part of its flagship Local Democracy Reporting service. This year, they will receive a 1.5 per cent pay rise issued by the BBC as part of its agreement with publishers.
National World has refused to contribute to the award despite doing so in previous years. LDRs at a rival publisher
recently received a five per cent increase in line with pay rises offered to journalists at the company.
Despite both publishers
receiving £38,299 from the BBC per filled LDR role outside London and £40,551 within, National World has cited national insurance and other costs including
management time, finance, human resources and training as additional expenditure incurred and therefore impacting their ability to provide a pay award journalists deserve. The NUJ National World LDR chapel said: “Members are angry that the firm is taking this unfair stance towards local democracy reporters. “The firm receives £38,299
per reporter outside London from the BBC – thousands
more than any of us are actually paid. So, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, we refute the company’s argument that it is losing money on the scheme.” The NUJ has asked the business to disclose details of costs but has received no written information. The current BBC-set minimum salary for senior LDRs is £24,416 outside London and £26,636 within, leaving a significant surplus.
inbrief...
SUNAK’S EX COMMS CHIEF AT GUARDIAN Amber de Botton, Rishi Sunak’s former director of communications, has joined Guardian Media Group. De Botton is the chief communications officer for the publisher and sits on its executive committee, reporting to editor-in- chief Katharine Viner and chief executive Anna Bateson.
HANCOCK LOSES CASE AGAINST TELEGRAPH Former health secretary Matt Hancock has failed to have a complaint to IPSO about a Daily Telegraph story upheld. The story, based on leaked Whatsapp messages, said he rejected advice from the chief medical officer. Hancock had given the messages to Telegraph journalist Isabel Oakeshott so she could ghostwrite a book with him.
MILL MEDIA WANTS TWICE THE STAFF Mill Media, the Substack-based publisher behind the Manchester Mill, Liverpool Post, Birmingham Dispatch and Sheffield Tribune, is to double its staff – adding 11 roles. The new jobs coincide with the forthcoming launch of Mill titles in London and Glasgow.
DAILY MAIL STARTS ONLINE VIDEO SHOWS The Daily Mail has launched a video offering on YouTube and other platforms. Shows of 15–30 minutes will cover entertainment, news, sports, crime and royals.
Evening Standard to go weekly
LONDON’S Evening Standard is to shut its daily newspaper and replace it with a weekly publication, bringing an end to almost 200 years of the title in the capital. The newspaper said it had been damaged
by the introduction of wifi on the London Underground, a shortage of commuters owing to the growth of working from home and changing consumer habits.
The Standard has lost £84.5 million in
the past six years, according to its accounts, and relies on funding from its part-owner Evgeny Lebedev. Its other shareholders include a bank with close links to the Saudi government. Industry sources suggested Lebedev had been willing to consider selling the outlet in recent years but no buyer was found.
theJournalist | 07
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