The battle is hotting up for the editorship of the Journalist with email and the internet playing a major role in appealing to the electorate of NUJ members who have until November 6 to cast their vote for the eight candidates.Emails are being sent direct to NUJ members who, as a group, have a history of low turnouts when voting for union posts.
Several of the candidates have set up their own websites and most are claiming the support of well known union members, activists and staff.
The Daily Star's FoC Steve Usher has the support of NUJ equality organiser Lena Calvert and Barry Fitzpatrick, NUJ head of publishing.
Meanwhile, former NUJ general secretary John Foster has come out in favour of Tim Arnold.
Mark Watts can claim the support of Bill Goodwin, the journalist who won the prolonged court battle to protect his sources, and Tim Llewellyn, the former BBC Middle East correspondent.
Rich Simcox, who has the backing of the NUJ Left, also claims Linda Piper, a former chair of the Provincial Newspapers Industrial Council and the general secretary of the International Federation of Journalists, Aidan White, as supporters.
The Daily Record's Frank Morgan is being backed by this year's NUJ president, James Doherty.
Also standing is former Times industrial editor Christine Buckley, Trinity Mirror content editor Stephen David Tilly, and freelance Michael Cross.
Details on all the candidates are on the NUJ's website.
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14 comments:
It's fantastic that there is so much interest in a position that could really be used to strengthen the industry.
It's worth noting that the people (minus yours truly, of course) who have come out to back Mark Watts - who is running on an independent editorial platform - are top names from journalism, particularly investigative journalism; Bill Goodwin, Martin Short, Tony Collins ...
Ouch. "top names from journalism". You might want to be a bit careful about your choice of language. Are you saying you're less of a journalist if you're not a high-profile investigator and "only" work for a local paper, say?
Well, two of the named “top journalists” are leading lights from provincial newspapers (Manchester and Hull). Another is a Hull-based photojournalist. So no, I am most certainly not saying that someone is less of a journalist if they are not an investigator or if they work for a local paper. What is interesting about the top names backing Mark is that they come from every corner of the media industry and Britain and Ireland.
To be fair I think all the candidates are saying they have supporters from all walks of life and all regions and nations etc.
It was really just a word of advice about language when you're running a campaign for someone who will need to appeal to all NUJ members - the vast majority of whom won't be "top names".
It should also be pointed out that the editorial independence of the Journalist is already enshrined in the union's rule - rightly - and that none of the candidates has said they would scrap it. Nor should they.
Lots of our members carry out good journalism in lots of different ways - some high-profile, some not. I think we should treat them all equally.
Tom Davies (humble subeditor, occasional writer and elected lay representative on the national executive)
Are you the Tom Davies who writes for When Saturday Comes?
At the London hustings last Wednesday, Mark Watts and Steve Usher thoroughly stressed the independence of the Journalist magazine. It may be up there in the union rules, but, when asked whether they would run a potentially damaging story, some candidates appeared to think that the job of the magazine is, first and foremost, to support the leadership. Thank you for pointing out that it isn't.
And, absolutely, everyone gets treated equally. Everyone gets the opportunity to vote for Mark. Good, eh?
No, sorry Fiona, I have to correct that - that's not a fair reflection of what was said.
I am clear that the job of a union journal is to support the union - i.e. its members.
If the notional 'damaging' story, the perameters of which were not defined by the questioner, would undermine the union, then the question becomes how you handle it.
The independence of the editor of the Journalist is unique in the union movement, as far as I'm aware, so it is something we have to cherish. But it must be used responsibly.
Anonymous, erm, yes I am. I'd be stretching it to say that makes me high-profile mind, though WSC is certainly a magazine I enjoy contributing to.
There you go Rich, I think I've got the lower division football obsessive vote sewn up. Always a vital demographic, that.
Tom
Looks like you've got the Anonymous vote sewn up too, Rich..
But going back to political independence; if you were editor of the Journalist, would you also be independent of NUJ Left?
Other than NUJ Left's endorsement of you on the NUJ Left website, I can find no reference (of your own) to the fact that NUJ Left is backing you. Why so shy?
"would you also be independent of NUJ Left" is a bit of an odd question, given it's an informal group encompassing a broad range of opinion - of which I'm happy to be a member, and from whom I'm happy to receive support.
Everyone involved in my campaign recognises that the editor edits on behalf of the whole of the NUJ - we are one union; we should act as one union. That's a commitment I have consistently given and am delighted to have the opportunity to give again.
Please consider carefully what the NUJ Left website says. The 'About' section shows that NUJ Left has an agenda of promoting its influence within the NUJ, including:
"Co-ordinating branch activity to propagate NUJ Left aims and objectives", ensuring "senior lay and elected left officials are accountable to NUJ Left", and "Identifying and targeting key elected posts and NEC seats, democratically agreeing slates for elections, and campaigning for NUJ Left candidates, to advance our influence and further develop equality representation on policy-making bodies and through other structures of the union"
http://www.nujleft.org/about/
That does not seem very informal to me. While not officially a political party, in my view NUJ Left seems to be operating much like one within the NUJ.
Virtually every entry on the http://www.nujleft.org/ front page was posted by, Rich Simcox. You seem to run that site, as an informal member or otherwise.
How many NUJ members even know that NUJ Left exists, and already has many of its members or friends in high places within the union?
The Journalist is there to cover and support all the union's members, not just those in NUJ Left.
So I ask you, are you independent of NUJ Left now, and if you were elected editor of The Journalist would you be independent of NUJ Left then?
Ouch, Simon. "Are you now, or have you ever been, a member of the Communist Party?" Interesting use of language if you're familiar with 20th Century history.
Let's not get our knickers in a twist over the NUJ Left. It's one of a number of groupings within the NUJ, like the photographers' network or the subs' network, in which like-minded people organise together.
And there are lots of us on the left who don't particularly identify with the way the NUJ Left organises, so let's keep things in perspective. I lean left, but I'm thinking of backing one of two other candidates. I don't think that will compromise their independence. People aren't as easily put into boxes as some seem to think.
From Kevin Cahill
The appeal to factionalism of any kind is wrong in relation to this job. Over the 36 years of my membership I have seen right and left damage the unions purpose and function. Bernard Levin was no contributor to union unity at the LFB, nor were his left wing enemies. The result was a paralysed branch. What we should be aiming for here is to get the best possible journalist on the shortlist, into the job. We need to prove to the wider public that journalism is important, has meaning in their lives and we will do that through a properley run, properley edited magazine, where all our colleagues find inspiration and stories. For my money the journalist for the job is Mark Watts.
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