View all newsletters
Sign up for our free email newsletters

Fighting for quality news media in the digital age.

Digital Britain: Newspapers invited to fill gap left by ITV

By Paul McNally

The Government has asked the newspaper industry to suggest what it role it can play in ‘providing impartial news in the digital age’ and fill the gap created by ITV cutting back its regional news service.

In his interim report on Digital Britain, communications minister Stephen Carter also invited the Office of Fair Trading to review the merger laws currently preventing consolidation in the local media.

“At a local level the challenges for news are intense. Many people are beginning to raise questions about the longevity of local content,” Carter said in his report.

The Digital Britain report comes at a time when ITV is merging its 17 news regions into nine. It has already axed 430 jobs from its regional news division.

Carter said that a proposed partnership between ITV and the BBC ‘offers a promising but not yet settled route forward”.

Ofcom has suggested that third parties, such as local newspapers, could provide the regional news on ITV on its behalf.

The Department for Culture Media and Sport has now invited responses to a consultation before 12 March.

Content from our partners
MHP Group's 30 To Watch awards for young journalists open for entries
How PA Media is helping newspapers make the digital transition
Publishing on the open web is broken, how generative AI could help fix it

A final version of the Digital Britain report is expected in early summer.

Carter told journalists today: ‘We don’t have all the answers to all the questions and in many instances we are not even sure we have got all the questions.”

Culture secretary Andy Burnham told the Commons that the Government was exploring how it could establish a public service organisation “alongside the BBC”, building on “the strength” of Channel 4.

Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog

Select and enter your email address Weekly insight into the big strategic issues affecting the future of the news industry. Essential reading for media leaders every Thursday. Your morning brew of news about the world of news from Press Gazette and elsewhere in the media. Sent at around 10am UK time. Our weekly does of strategic insight about the future of news media aimed at US readers. A fortnightly update from the front-line of news and advertising. Aimed at marketers and those involved in the advertising industry.
  • Business owner/co-owner
  • CEO
  • COO
  • CFO
  • CTO
  • Chairperson
  • Non-Exec Director
  • Other C-Suite
  • Managing Director
  • President/Partner
  • Senior Executive/SVP or Corporate VP or equivalent
  • Director or equivalent
  • Group or Senior Manager
  • Head of Department/Function
  • Manager
  • Non-manager
  • Retired
  • Other
Visit our privacy Policy for more information about our services, how New Statesman Media Group may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
Thank you

Thanks for subscribing.

Websites in our network