Wednesday 15 September 2010

Mail warned don't cut off your local nose for news














Steve Dyson in his blog reviewing regional newspapers, hosted by HoldtheFrontPage, makes a good point today about how many national stories have been dug out by local journalists.
Steve highlights a tragic story of a mother who could rescue only one of her two children after her car plunged into a dyke. It made the splash in the Daily Mail under the headline.'THE CHOICE NO MOTHER SHOULD FACE'.
He writes: "Not only did it make the Daily Mail: a quick search on Google shows another 89 news articles from the same day, including The Sun and most other nationals, the BBC, Sky, et al. But what most of the world does not know is that this very story was page one of the Derby Telegraph the day before, after nearly a week of painstaking research and double death-knocks by the local team."
Steve notes that the Derby Telegraph is part of Northcliffe, the regional arm of the Daily Mail and General Trust. His blog post ends with a sting: "Like many in the regional press, the Telegraph has seen squeezes, both in staffing numbers due to recessionary cutbacks and, in previous years, when district offices were closed. This partly explains a 7.5 per cent drop in circulation to 35,075 in the Latest ABCs.
"So I'm pleased to have been able to review a copy which highlights its newsy grassroots to ultimate bosses Daily Mail and General Trust. They should do their very best not to cut off their regional noses lest they spite their national face."

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