Tuesday 20 March 2012

The regional press dilemma: How to resource credible online services and still make money


The biggest problem facing the regional press is how to resource and develop credible online services while continuing to make money, Adrian Faber, editor of the Wolverhampton-based Express and Star, told the Leveson Inquiry today.

Faber described the last few years for the regional press as having been "extremely painful" because of declining revenue and the impact of the switch from print to online.

But he told Lord Justice Leveson that the Express and Star, the country's highest circulation regional newspaper, still had 100 journalists and was able to cover the Crown Court, magistrates' courts, local council meetings in two boroughs and health authority meetings.

Faber said he and his colleagues had been surprised by some of the revelations at the inquiry about how the national press operated.

"We've never hacked anyone's phone, never paid a public official or a police officer. Never been asked for money," he said. "The difference between the nationals and regional press is immense."

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