Analysing the impact of digital tools on news production, identity and jurisdiction at regional newspaper newsrooms in the UK

In 2019 the UK government published its results and recommendations for a sustainable future for local news provision, The Cairncross Review (Cairncross, 2019a) was set up due to a crisis in local newspapers caused by digital convergence, falling sales and advertising revenues, job losses, newspaper closures and company mergers (Mediatique, 2018). The report’s findings voiced particular concern about the decline in public interest journalism and the connected decrease in public engagement with local democracy. This thesis identifies exactly how the deterioration of public interest news provision has occurred within local newspaper news production in the UK.
The triangulated research project included content analysis of advertisements for journalism jobs at local newspapers placed from November to January every year from 2014 to 2017, observations and interviews conducted in the newsrooms of two daily newspapers owned by two of the major publishing companies in the UK and a survey of journalists working at local newspapers in the UK.
The findings of this research identified a divide within newsrooms, which was driven by company focus to increase audience analytics and online profit. This has resulted in marginalisation of traditional subject specialist reporters, whose output was overshadowed and diluted by a strongly increasing focus on popular online content. This has resulted in a spiral of declining public interest news production and an increasing focus on other types of online content. Company mergers, cross-title working and shared content have contributed to the effects of the decline further.
This research demonstrates how the digital divide within news-making processes has not only jeopardised publication of vital public interest journalism but has also compromised the identity and jurisdiction of local newspapers and their journalists.