Profit hike for Trinity Mirror thanks to GMG Regionals acquisition

Posted by Oliver Luft on 3 March 2011 at 09:59
Tags: Media Business, National Newspapers, Newspapers, Regional Newspapers

Trinity Mirror increased operating profits last year thanks to additional revenue brought in by the purchase of GMG Regional Media and cost savings across the regional and national newspaper business.

The publisher reported this morning that adjusted operating profits increased 17 per cent year-on-year in the 12 months to 2 January to £123.3m. (more…)

Brighton Argus journalists join Newsquest colleagues in strike action

Posted by Oliver Luft on 11 November 2010 at 11:29
Tags: National Union of Journalists, Newspapers, People, Regional Newspapers

Journalists working at the Brighton Argus are to join colleagues working on sister Newsquest titles and strike over their continuing pay freeze and proposed job cuts.

Members of the National Union of Journalists at the Argus voted for a 48-hour strike on Thursday and Friday next week, according to Brightonandhovenews.org.

The strike vote follows union members deciding to ballot on possible industrial action at a chapel meeting to discuss management proposals to cut seven jobs and transfer the paper’s subbing operation to Southampton.

That meeting was held on the car park of a local ASDA after the Argus banned chapel get-togethers on its premises. (more…)

Look magazine brings out…a shoe range

Posted by Oliver Luft on 22 September 2010 at 11:00
Tags: Journalism

First we had Buzz - perfume by The Sun. Now we have The Look Shoe – which is, errr…, a range of shoes from Look magazine.

The IPC Media shopping weekly is getting in on the act after cutting a deal with retailer Office to sell their “luxe suede ruffle fronted” shoes from its high street stores.

The Look Shoe, which will launch later this week at a London Fashion Week event, comes in three colours - bronze, red and black - and is a snip at be £88 a pair.

Press Gazette’s prediction for the next week’s top marketing spin-off: merkins from The Economist.

David Lynch to guest edit Wallpaper

Posted by Oliver Luft on 8 September 2010 at 11:17
Tags: Consumer Magazines, Magazines

Wallpaper - that gloriously unabashed ponce-fest of a magazine - has roped in oddball film director David Lynch to guest edit its October issue.

Publisher IPC Media issued a press release this morning confirming how its title was collaborating with the “chain-smoking, quiff-sporting, coffee-making, transcendental-meditating Hollywood maverick” on the latest issue.

Lynch will share guest-editing duties with stage director Robert Wilson, with each given their own section to create “their own covers, bringing peace, unity and amazing movie magic to the printed page”.

Smashing stuff. Can’t wait until it goes on sale tomorrow. In the meantime (and for those of you who missed it last month) Press Gazette can heartily recommend a viewing of Wallpaper’s first foray into short film.

The magazine described the flick – called Quatre - as a “complex tale of mistaken identities, passions reignited, the latest Lanvin and good old girl-on-girl action” and “erotically charged must-see piece of cinema”.

How can you resist such a modest sell?

RBI continues to offload titles with sale of Utility Week

Posted by Oliver Luft on 16 August 2010 at 09:43
Tags: B2B Magazines, Magazines, New Media, Online

Reed Business Information has sold its Utility Week title to Croydon-based media company Faversham House for an undisclosed sum. (more…)

The Sun joins condemnation of Southampton FC’s ban on photographers

Posted by Oliver Luft on 9 August 2010 at 15:24
Tags: National Newspapers, Newspapers, Photography, press freedom

The Sun has joined mounting criticism of Southampton Football Club’s decision to ban press photographers from its St Mary’s Stadium.

The redtop responded to the decision today by “printing the most one-sided match report in the history of The Sun”. (more…)

Monocle publishes a summer newspaper: all yours for just £7

Posted by Oliver Luft on 3 August 2010 at 11:02
Tags: Consumer Magazines, Magazines, Newspapers

Achingly cool magazine Monocle has launched a summer offshoot – a newspaper designed as a “handsome companion from sun lounger to sun downers”.

And the “Monocle Mediterraneo” beach special - “on sale in all the best resorts, from the West Coast to the eastern Med and the key airport hubs in between” – is available for the knock-down price of just £7.

“There’s a huge amount of talk about the death of print, thanks to various types of pad’ devices,” Monocle founder Tyler Brûlé was reported saying in the Standard.

“But if you think of summer - with sand, swimming, sun cream and socialising - a carefully crafted newspaper is more useful and reader-friendly than a backlit screen that hates the sun and salt.”

Personally, I prefer to take jigsaws of English Heritage sites to the beach. Could Monocle conjure me up an international jetset version? I can stretch to £3.57.

Johnston Press to ’start new redundancies’ on Irish titles

Posted by Oliver Luft on 2 August 2010 at 10:35
Tags: Newspapers, Regional Newspapers

Johnston Press is reported to have instigated a new round of redundancies on its Irish newspaper titles.

The Irish Independent reported this morning that the regional publishing group is to cut jobs as part of a new round of cost-cutting.

The report comes as the threat of widespread strike across Johnston Press papers in Great Britain dissipates following the end of a two-year pay freeze and resumption of pay talks across the publishing group. (more…)

Video: Wikileaks’ Julian Assange press conference on military files leak

Posted by Oliver Luft on 26 July 2010 at 12:29
Tags: New Media, Online, press freedom

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is currently giving a press conference at London’s Frontline Club about the publication today by his organisation of thousands of secret military documents revealing details of incidents when civilians were killed by coalition troops in Afghanistan. (more…)

Trinity Mirror editor’s spat with academic continues as he defends his research

Posted by Oliver Luft on 22 July 2010 at 10:38
Tags: Newspapers, People, Regional Newspapers

The ongoing argument over the running of Trinity Mirror’s two big newspapers in Wales - the Daily Post and the Western Mail – has taken a further turn with publication of an open letter to Alan Edmunds, editor of the Mail and publishing director of Media Wales.

The letter - written by Dr Andy Williams, a research fellow at the Cardiff School of Journalism – comes after Williams’  critique of Trinity Mirror’s stewardship of Media Wales led Edmunds to accuse him of publishing “one-eyed, inadequately-researched hyperbole”.

In the open letter, Williams said he felt he needed to “engage with the substantive criticisms you make of a recent feature I wrote…Amongst your ad hominem attacks were a few points on which I hope we can open a more productive dialogue. (more…)

A few quick numbers on Times and Sunday Times readership behind the paywall

Posted by Oliver Luft on 19 July 2010 at 09:34
Tags: Mobile, National Newspapers, New Media, Newspapers, Online

The weekend saw a flurry of figures about the reader reaction to the introduction of the Times paywall. (more…)

The wind is changing. Take a Break magazine is going into politics

Posted by Oliver Luft on 8 July 2010 at 11:30
Tags: Journalism

The protracted birth of the Dave and Nick show left the nation chaffing from a painful over-exposure to the rough tongue of politics.

These days a chap can hardly make it to his nearest Morrisons for a fresh Ginsters’ Fiery Cheese Wrap without pulling a dozen giant winces as victim after victim of the election fallout gingerly waddles inside for an extra big pot of salve.

Well, prepare for another lick. Best selling weekly women’s magazine Take a Break is getting in on the act by launching its own political party. (more…)

Government indicates BBC, ITN and Sky agree to open up broadcast pool

Posted by Oliver Luft on 24 June 2010 at 09:43
Tags: BBC, Broadcast, Mobile, National Newspapers, New Media, Newspapers, Online, Television

The Government has indicated that the BBC, ITN and Sky have reached an agreement to allow all news organisations access to pooled broadcast material.

Included in its response to the culture select committee’s recommendation on the future of local media, the DCMS said a wider range of organisations should be allowed to buy footage traditionally caballed by leading broadcasters. (more…)

Atex introduction unlikely to bring compulsory redundancies to Scotsman, claims report

Posted by Oliver Luft on 17 June 2010 at 07:47
Tags: National Newspapers, Newspapers

Journalists at The Scotsman are expected escape compulsory redundancy as owner Johnston Press introduces the controversial Atex content management system to the paper. (more…)

Council’s new PR chief to earn more than David Cameron, claims report

Posted by Oliver Luft on 8 June 2010 at 10:10
Tags: Newspapers, PR, Regional Newspapers

The new head of communications at Suffolk County Council is set to earn more than David Cameron once they move into their post next week – the Telegraph has reported.

The new pr chief will be paid up to £700 a day when they start on a six month temporary contract on Monday. (more…)

Council-run papers: the issue is going in circles

Posted by Oliver Luft on 25 January 2010 at 11:27
Tags: Journalism

Publication today of research by the Audit Commission which found that local authorities were not wasting or misusing public money through the publication of council-run newspapers might have been expected to draw some kind of line under the issue – instead its now in danger of going in circles.

Responding to the Audit Commission findings David Newell, director of the Newspaper Society, called for the OFT to now examine the “question of damaging impact” on local media businesses. (more…)

9 out of 10 won’t pay for online news

Posted by Oliver Luft on 21 October 2009 at 10:55
Tags: Journalism, Media Business, Mobile, New Media, Newspapers, Online

Nine out of ten UK consumers would never pay for online news, a new survey has revealed.

A study of more than 2,000 consumers by Lightspeed Research asked what content users wouldn’t be prepared to pay for online.

It found that 91 per cent of respondents would never pay for news online and 90 per cent would be unwilling to pay for news analysis. (more…)

Daily Mail goes into overdrive: ‘One gay man, two lesbians, a three-legged cat and a poisoned curry plot’

Posted by Oliver Luft on 8 October 2009 at 10:02
Tags: Journalism, National Newspapers, Newspapers

Take a bow Jaya Narain for you have today crafted a pitch-perfect Daily Mail intro:

“A gay man tried to poison his lesbian neighbours by putting slug pellets into their curry after he was accused of kidnapping their three-legged cat.”

Can anyone think of a more compelling first paragraph?

Guardian prints correction after failing to refer to its own subs as journalists

Posted by Oliver Luft on 8 October 2009 at 09:46
Tags: Journalism, National Newspapers, Newspapers

The Guardian has today printed a correction after failing to refer to its own sub-editors as journalists in an earlier article.

Readers’ editor, Siobhain Butterworth, wrote on Monday, “journalists and sub-editors are not expected to be multilingual” in a piece about the paper’s approach to accents. (more…)

Independent in test case to open up court proceedings

Posted by Oliver Luft on 6 October 2009 at 10:08
Tags: Journalism, Law, National Newspapers, Newspapers, press freedom

Lawyers from the Independent are involved in a test case to open up legal proceedings involving vulnerable people to greater public scrutiny.

Publisher Independent News and Media, along with a number of other media organisations, is bidding to make it easier to report cases involving vulnerable people incapable of managing their own affairs. (more…)