NMA: Local News Media Has ‘Consistently Demonstrated’ Willingness to Partner With BBC
The local news media industry has “consistently demonstrated that it is willing to work with the BBC to test the possibilities for partnership” the News Media Association has said in response to a speech by James Harding yesterday (Thursday).
Speaking at an event entitled The Future of BBC News and Current Affairs in a Global Digital Age, director of BBC news and current affairs Mr Harding said “the pessimism around local journalism” was “overdone” and practical cooperation between the local newspaper industry and the BBC was now taking place.
Santha Rasaiah, NMA legal, policy and regulatory affairs director, said in response to the speech: “The local newspaper industry has consistently demonstrated that it is willing to work with the BBC to test the possibilities for partnership and is in fact currently doing so in pilot schemes in Yorkshire and the north east of England.
“The industry has always been keen to explore a more positive relationship with the BBC and one in which local papers would be appropriately credited, and rewarded, for creating content for the BBC and sharing it with them in genuine partnership. This was put to the Culture Media and Sport Select Committee, and Director-General Tony Hall and James Harding have publicly said that offers such as the KM Group’s proposals for a courts and sports package could be explored, but these have yet to be followed up.
“Local news and information is a fundamental part of democracy and it is in all our interests to establish an effective and workable way forward which promotes and enhances the local news media rather than damaging it.”
Mr Harding said in his speech at City University: “We have renewed the case for the BBC’s contribution to the revival of local journalism. We have shown a willingness to take on the wrong-headed argument that the problems of the local newspaper industry are the BBC’s fault; and we have shown a willingness to work with the local newspapers in meaningful partnerships. Someone said to me this week that the definition of partnership is “the mutual suspension of loathing in the pursuit of resources”. Well, I hope it can be more than that, as there is a real issue of information inequality in this country.
“As I said at a conference we hosted in Salford in June, the pessimism around local journalism is overdone. And at that meeting, we started talking about practical cooperation – and, in the months since, we have got on with it.
“Here’s one example, we have launched Local Live pilots in West Yorkshire and the North East to improve linking to other news sites from the BBC Local Live module – they’re continuing and have had good feedback from regional newspaper groups. We are also doing more on training. In January we will host the first of our joint industry events looking at data journalism at a local level. It’s in our self-interest to see a thriving local news business. I believe it’s in the local news business’ self-interest to see a thriving BBC. If we want to, we can make that happen. We’re open to it.”