Behind Local News To Host Autumn Conference During Journalism Matters Week

Behind Local News is to host its annual conference with an agenda-setting programme of topics and annual awards recognising women in journalism during the week of the industry’s Journalism Matters campaign.

The Behind Local News Conference will be held at the International Convention Centre in Birmingham on 3 November and will be free to attend.

The conference is timed to be held during this year’s Journalism Matters week, the annual News Media Association campaign to highlight the importance of trusted journalism to society, which will take place this year from 31 October to 6 November.

Experts will be discussing many of the issues, opportunities and challenges faced by people working in newsrooms as editors, digital editors, social media and content managers. BLN will also be celebrating the winners in the annual women in journalism awards.

Because this is a free event, tickets are limited for those wishing to attend and who are not part of the organising publishers, Iliffe Media, DC Thomson, Newsquest or Reach. Please register for the event here. 

One of the most pressing issues facing journalists today is online safety, and Reach’s Dr Rebecca Whittington will host a panel of experts discussing this important issue. Other topics on the agenda include how to reach new audiences and what news publishers are doing in this space through Tik Tok, Instagram and other platforms.

The conference will host a session about the challenges of hybrid working and hear what publishers are doing to manage their newsrooms remotely, as well as addressing the issue of staff retention and recruitment. There is also a session about audience engagement and how newsletters are driving change in our newsrooms.

An expert panel to discuss the future of public interest news reporting and the importance of sustaining this quality of journalism has also been lined up. Professor Francois Nel, who is leading the News Futures 2035 consortium, at the Media innovation Studio at the University of Central Lancashire, will be running a session on public interest journalism as the sponsor.

BLN has thanked event headline sponsors DC Thomson, Iliffe Media and Reach plc, and session sponsors Chartbeat, Viafoura, Curiously, Women in Journalism, and the News Futures 2035 Consortium.