It used to be said of newspapers that they were black and white and read all over.
Today our local papers are black and blue from being beaten up by deserting readers and hardly read at all.
The latest circulation figures for the first half of this year make depressing reading for those who believe local papers are an essential part of local democracy.
The area’s two biggest selling papers – the High-Wycombe based Bucks Free Press and the Maidenhead Advertiser – both fell below the psychologically important 20,000 circulation mark. They’ve dropped 6.6per cent and 5.3 per cent respectively compared with the first six months of 2009.
The Bucks Herald, based in Aylesbury, took the biggest knock of all losing nine per cent in sales to reach a weekly circulation of 13,823; while the Buckinghamshire Advertiser and Examiner titles, based mainly around Amersham and Chesham, fell 8.4 per cent to a circulation of 11,558.
The papers are recording their lowest circulation figures in living memory, and clearly if the falls continue in the way they have in the last decade, they are not sustainable.
It’s not all gloom for the shareholders: advertising is recovering as are profits, and the numbers of people visiting the paper’s websites are soaring. Whether those people will willingly pay a subscription to view local newspaper websites remains highly debateable however.
The real concern is over the future of local journalism. The papers are employing fewer journalists, and those that remain hardly ever get out of the office to do any real reporting and investigating. The stresses and the strains are showing: some stories are ill-researched and unbalanced. The columns on-line and in print are relying more on anonymous commentators and eager locals providing gossip and chitchat for free.
Optimists believe that in the end people will pay a higher price, online and on paper, for quality journalism. This is precisely the gamble News International is taking in charging for the Times and Sunday Times websites. Time will tell if they are right. In the meantime, the local papers will grimly hang on and hope that something turns up.
Monday, 30 August 2010
Friday, 27 August 2010
That was the week...
Record passes – After record high achievements in A levels, came record high achievements in GCSEs in local schools. But it all added to the pressure at local universities and colleges. Bucks New University in High Wycombe said most of its courses were full and had experts on hand to deal with hundreds of calls from students trying to find a place.
Victim beheaded – Police confirmed that 32 year old Aylesbury man Chris Varian who was found dead at Oxfordshire Golf Club near Thame had been decapitated. Jonathan Limani, aged 33, appeared in court charged with his murder and was remanded in custody.
Flash floods – Torrential storms caused flooding and led to scores of accidents on local roads. Farmers said the rains were delaying the harvest, but there were no signs yet that the quality of crops was being affected. The Bucks County Show on Thursday was a muddy quagmire, but it didn’t prevent thousands from enjoying the show at Weedon.
Movie boost – Pinewood Studios said it was having a better year than it expected with film makers queuing up to make movies. It follows a bleaker outlook earlier this year when it looked like its income would decline for the first time in years. Meanwhile Madonna spent most of the week at West Wycombe House where she is directing her first film, W.E., which tells the story of King Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson. Laurence Fox is playing Edward VIII and his father James Fox is playing Edward VIII’s father, George V.
Comic’s victory – Rowan Atkinson won permission to build a futuristic mansion in the Chilterns countryside despite protests from locals and planners who said it would “stick out like a sore thumb.” The 55 year old comic has hired top American futuristic architect Richard Meiner to build him a five bedroom house in glass and white steel in the countryside at Ipsden. Mr Atkinson told councillors the house would be “graceful and elegant”.
Waitrose expands – Waitrose supermarket announced it was moving into the old Woolworth store in Amersham High Street as part of its plans to increase its presence in the area. It’s planning a superstore in the centre of Aylesbury and is expected to open a store in Gerrards Cross.
Runaway kite – A red kite tagged in the Chilterns has been discovered 400 miles away in Perthshire. It’s surprised ornithologists who didn’t think kites travelled so far in one go. A few pairs of red kites were reintroduced into the area at Stokenchurch in the 1990s. There are now estimated to be 800 breeding pairs throughout the Chilterns.
Victim beheaded – Police confirmed that 32 year old Aylesbury man Chris Varian who was found dead at Oxfordshire Golf Club near Thame had been decapitated. Jonathan Limani, aged 33, appeared in court charged with his murder and was remanded in custody.
Flash floods – Torrential storms caused flooding and led to scores of accidents on local roads. Farmers said the rains were delaying the harvest, but there were no signs yet that the quality of crops was being affected. The Bucks County Show on Thursday was a muddy quagmire, but it didn’t prevent thousands from enjoying the show at Weedon.
Movie boost – Pinewood Studios said it was having a better year than it expected with film makers queuing up to make movies. It follows a bleaker outlook earlier this year when it looked like its income would decline for the first time in years. Meanwhile Madonna spent most of the week at West Wycombe House where she is directing her first film, W.E., which tells the story of King Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson. Laurence Fox is playing Edward VIII and his father James Fox is playing Edward VIII’s father, George V.
Comic’s victory – Rowan Atkinson won permission to build a futuristic mansion in the Chilterns countryside despite protests from locals and planners who said it would “stick out like a sore thumb.” The 55 year old comic has hired top American futuristic architect Richard Meiner to build him a five bedroom house in glass and white steel in the countryside at Ipsden. Mr Atkinson told councillors the house would be “graceful and elegant”.
Waitrose expands – Waitrose supermarket announced it was moving into the old Woolworth store in Amersham High Street as part of its plans to increase its presence in the area. It’s planning a superstore in the centre of Aylesbury and is expected to open a store in Gerrards Cross.
Runaway kite – A red kite tagged in the Chilterns has been discovered 400 miles away in Perthshire. It’s surprised ornithologists who didn’t think kites travelled so far in one go. A few pairs of red kites were reintroduced into the area at Stokenchurch in the 1990s. There are now estimated to be 800 breeding pairs throughout the Chilterns.
Tuesday, 17 August 2010
Road smash highlights hospital fears
There’s increasing concern about accessibility of hospital services after ambulances taking patients from High Wycombe to Stoke Mandeville had to be diverted the long way round today after a pile-up blocked the Amersham to Aylesbury road for several hours during the evening rush hour. Most accident and emergency cases in Wycombe to to Stoke Mandeville and at present all Wycombe births are being carried out there. If an expectant mother or accident victim had been caught in yesterday’s snarl up it would have taken over an hour to get from Wycombe to the hospital.
The concerns are deepened by persistent reports, officially denied, that Wexham Park Hospital near Slough may become just an accident and emergency unit in order to reduce costs and the hospital trust’s massive debt. Many Wycombe area patients go to Wexham as an alternative to Stoke Mandeville.
Today's accident at the Leather Lane junction with the main road at Great Missenden, involved a car transporter and three other vehicles. One man was badly injured and others had to be rescued from their vehicles.
The concerns are deepened by persistent reports, officially denied, that Wexham Park Hospital near Slough may become just an accident and emergency unit in order to reduce costs and the hospital trust’s massive debt. Many Wycombe area patients go to Wexham as an alternative to Stoke Mandeville.
Today's accident at the Leather Lane junction with the main road at Great Missenden, involved a car transporter and three other vehicles. One man was badly injured and others had to be rescued from their vehicles.
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