Quality news providers ‘must be supported’

THE rise of so-called “fake news” means it is “vital” that high-quality journalism is supported, the Culture Secretary has said as he launched the latest stage of an inquiry into press sustainability.

Matt Hancock called a “fearless and independent press” one of the foundation stones of democracy, but said it had been undermined by “dramatic technological changes”.

Research shows revenues from circulation and print advertising have fallen from £7billion to just over £3billion over the past decade as Facebook, Google and others have swallowed up an ever greater share of advertising spend. At the same time, a Government review has highlighted “the role and impact of digital search engines and social media platforms” as one of the threats to quality journalism.

Mr Hancock said a “cleareyed view” was needed of how to support quality news providers after the number of full-time journalists fell by a quarter since 2007. More than 300 local and regional titles have closed down over the same period.

Earlier this year, Theresa May launched a review into the sustainability of highquality UK journalism. It is chaired by Dame Frances Cairncross, the former journalist and rector of Exeter College, Oxford, who yesterday issued a call for evidence on how the public can be guaranteed quality journalism in decades to come “which meets their needs, is delivered in the way they want, and supports democratic engagement”.

Mr Hancock said: “At a time of dramatic technological changes and with our institutions under threat from disinformation, we need this clear-eyed view of how high-quality journalism can continue to be effectively produced, distributed and consumed.”

A report commissioned by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport found that 6,000 print journalism jobs had gone in a decade. The report also found that “despite severe revenue challenges and lower profitability”, the newspaper industry contributes 50 per cent of total editorial journalism in the UK – more than online and broadcast news combined.