Two Yorkshire journalists have been named on the steering board of the £12 million fund set up by the Government to tackle ‘news deserts’ and develop industry-wide tech initiatives.
Jeremy Clifford, the former editor of The Yorkshire Post and Sheffield Star, and John Baron (pictured above, image by Bob Smith) the co-founder of the West Leeds Dispatch, will help decide where money from the Local News Fund goes.
As HoldTheFrontPage reports, part of the fund will be used to revive local news provision in areas where there are no dedicated print, online, TV or radio outlets.
The fund will also be used to help local news publishers innovate digitally and to support community radio stations. Local media outlets are being urged to prepare their bids for grants through the new fund, with up to £125,000 available for each successful applicant.
The funding can be used to invest in the tools and services needed for sustainable digital innovation which can help local media tap into new or younger audiences and revenue streams.
Specific funding to tackle news deserts – defined as local authority areas without a dedicated media outlet – will become available in 2027/28.
“We hope this fund will stimulate innovative thinking, industry collaboration and new partnerships in the local news sector.” Jeremy Clifford
According to the Government, the steering group plays an advisory role in providing independent expertise and objective advice to the Department of Culture Media and Sport in the decision-making process for distribution of funding.
A press statement said: “In convening this board, DCMS aims to benefit from a wide range of experience of the local media sector and related industries. This will help to ensure value for money in the distribution of funding and that the best bids are selected for Local News Fund grants, for the benefit of local media and the communities that they serve.”
Jeremy, now an executive media consultant, said: “I am privileged to have been trusted with this role to find ways of supporting local news and innovation in an industry that plays such an important part in our communities.
“I have the greatest admiration and respect for the work our journalists do day-in day-out to tell the stories we need to hear, to give a voice to those who need it and to ensure scrutiny of those in public office.
“We hope this fund will stimulate innovative thinking, industry collaboration and new partnerships in the local news sector. But we recognise the complexity of the challenges that the Fund has been set up to help address, and how it will need a coordinated approach drawing on industry expertise and the government’s experience of grantmaking at scale.
“We see the Steering Board as a vital part of this approach, drawing together a diverse and expert range of industry perspectives to help ensure it benefits local media across the diverse communities it serves.”
And John, who recently spoke at the NUJ Leeds and West Yorkshire branch’s AGM, wrote on LinkedIn: “I believe this fund is an important start in helping to support the invaluable work of local media and public interest journalism. I’m looking forward to helping to shape the future of this important initiative.”