High-quality independent journalism informs and engages the public, debunks misinformation, brings together communities, and holds the powerful to account. As the biggest investors in journalism in the UK, news media publishers are the powerhouses for journalistic content, often setting the news agenda for others follow, providing a significant contribution to our democratic society.

The Online Safety Bill is a large piece of legislation designed to crack down on harms propagated by the tech platforms online. The Bill introduces new rules for social media and search engines which will have a duty of care to protect users from harmful content online.

Local journalism plays a unique and vital role in promoting democracy in local communities across the UK. Local journalists are at the heart of the communities they serve, reporting on the stories that matter most to local residents and campaigning on their behalf.

Freedom of expression is a universal human right. It is not the prerogative of the politician. Nor is it the privilege of the journalist. In their day-to-day work, journalists are simply exercising every citizen’s right to free speech.

Print and paper is used by news media publishers to produce their print titles. Newsprint is uncoated paper, made out of mechanical pulp or waste paper, which is used to produce newspapers.

Journalists have a fundamental role to play in holding power to account on behalf of the public. Sadly, those who wish to avoid such scrutiny can resort to threatening journalists with physical violence or other forms of intimidation in order to censor their reporting.

The NMA is concerned to ensure that recommendations for law reform to protect national security do not undermine press freedom by criminalising legitimate public interest journalism.