Question reference: S6W-10707
- Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
- Date lodged: 1 September 2022
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Current status: Answered by Angus Robertson on 22 September 2022
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to support local newspapers.
Answer
The Scottish Government is committed to supporting the sustainability of local news publishers as a key part of the public interest news sector in Scotland. We recognise the value that local newspapers bring to their communities, and the important role they play as part of a well-functioning democracy.
In 2021, the Scottish Government set up the Public Interest Journalism Working Group to consider the long-term sustainability of public interest journalism, including local news, in Scotland, and to recommend ways to ensure its ongoing resilience and relevance. We responded to the Group’s recommendations in June 2022. This included a commitment to facilitate a roundtable event this Autumn, to support the creation of a new Scottish Public Interest Journalism Institute.
While it is not for Scottish Government to influence the remit of the Institute, it is likely, in line with the Working Group’s recommendations, that part of its role will be to support local news.
Separately, the Scottish Government spent £258,056.00 on local newspaper advertising in the financial year 2021-22.