Newsquest Launches The Vale Journal

Newsquest has launched The Vale Journal for the Blackmore Vale area spanning the borders of Wiltshire, Dorset and Somerset.

The Journal is a new edition of the Salisbury Journal, which is the third oldest weekly paper in the country.

Publisher Bill Browne said: “Our newly titled Vale Journal is an edition dedicated to a region that is rich in news and community spirit. And for those who have known us for a long time, the truth is the Journal has never gone away, having first distributed in the region in the 1700s.

“The Salisbury Journal remains the third oldest regional weekly newspaper still in publication and it was first established in 1729. It has been in uninterrupted weekly print since 1736. Two World Wars and even a general strike have failed to bring it to a halt. So, it is perhaps with no surprise that Covid-19 had no impact on us bringing news and information to our many valued readers.”

Mr Browne added: “Our journalists have met the current crisis with a determination that has served our part of the media profession well over three centuries. Their reward is to see a readership and audience grow to a number that far exceeds anything the Journal has ever achieved before, with a weekly reach of 160,000 in April.”