An editor who left his role after three months in the job has said he found it impossible to return to the “box ticking” corporate world.
As reported on HTFP last week, Jeremy Smith stood down as editor of the Oswestry and Border Counties Advertizer last month having taken up the post at the start of June.
The move had marked a return to local newspapers after a 13-year break for Jeremy, who originally joined the Advertiser as a sub-editor in 1982.
Now, in a comment on our original story, Jeremy has explained the reasons behind his departure,
Said Jeremy: “Why did I stand down? Well, there’s no mystery, no scandal, no conspiracy. It simply wasn’t the job I thought it was going to be.
“In the 13 years I had been out of mainstream journalism the world of provincial newspapers has changed beyond recognition. It’s a world where advertisers now call the shots and dictate the rules and it didn’t take me long to realise I had no appetite for such a set-up.
“Also, after being my own boss for 13 years I found it impossible to return to the hoop-jumping, box-ticking corporate world.
“I’m glad I took the job, if only to prove to myself that it wasn’t for me. I wish my former colleagues and the new editor every success.”
Jeremy spent 17 years with the Advertizer’s parent company NWN Media, becoming deputy editor of the Evening Leader before leaving in 1999 to go freelance.
NWN Media is currently seeking a replacement for Jeremy. It has so far declined to comment further on the circumstances of his departure.
Sign up for our free daily email bulletin
Follow HTFP on Twitter
Got a story? Email the Editor at
The management and advertising definitely interfere too much and it’s not surprising an editor such as Jeremy who’s been out of the game for a while despairs at what the industry has become.
But worse than that and the “box ticking” is the sheer lack of staff.
The conveyor belt metaphor has been done to death, but really, it’s just getting worse and worse.
I can just about still cover important stories, but at the expense of quality elsewhere.
The industry relies on a lot of goodwill from staff, and even now, most journalists still take pride in their work.
But I look around and the few who remain look utterly exhausted.
Report this comment
Like Jeremy, I dipped my toe back into the world of local papers last year after a lengthy absence. A few things quickly struck me about the group of weekly paid-fors I was working on:
1) The number of ads and ad features, all crammed into the front half.
2) The low pagination and absolute refusal to up-page. Ever.
3) The dearth of reporters and resulting reliance on press releases.
4) Use of templates, no subs and reporters writing everything to fit.
5) The price (80p for 32 pages on most titles).
The company’s MD was an accountant who, after introducing these wonderful cost-cutting measure to maximise profits, couldn’t understand why his readership was falling like a stone. Reader feedback was always the same:
1) “There’s too many ads in it.”
2) “It’s too thin and flimsy.”
3) “There’s no real stories in it.”
4) “It’s sloppy and there’s too many mistakes.”
5) “It’s too expensive.”
I lasted two months.
Report this comment
Good for you, Jeremy. It’s great to see that the integrity you showed when we worked together on the Birmingham Mail is still there. Best wishes for the future.
Report this comment
What did he expect?
The lack of commercial thinking by your average journalist baffles me in this day and age.
The bosses are trapped in a vicious circle of declined readership/ad revenue so he expected what exactly?
Report this comment
I’m not surprised he left. Have you seen how often NWN posts job adverts? You have to wonder about any organisation which clearly has such a high turnover of staff.
Report this comment
And this is the same company which made all their deputy editors redundant two years ago. As a result the remaining editors, who all are vastly experienced, now play the role of deputies to management’s own misguided view of news and what sells papers!
Report this comment
And this is the same company that is performing comparatively well considering the industry…
Report this comment
It could be performing better if it could retain its staff.
Report this comment
I have no idea why Jeremy really left NWN so can only take his comments at face value. My own experience working there is etched in acid in my memory. I was treated like dirt most of the time. Not one word of praise or thank you in almost two years.
Report this comment
I worked there too and am impressed you lasted as long as two years! I can honestly say it was the most unpleasant working experience of my life. Likewise, I don’t know why Jeremy left , but I know some people left after only a few weeks.
Report this comment
I worked there for more than 5 years, but in a non-editorial position, I’m guessing you lot were editorial?
Report this comment
Yes, it was editorial. I think those outside it had a much better experience.
Report this comment
I worked in editorial at NWN for 17yrs, only leaving [in 2009] to emigrate. I would never have stayed if the picture was as bad as what people are painting it. In all those years, not once did I dread going to work. Thanks NWN, the experience I gained with you has now set me up with an editorial position with a local magazine. And not a Uni degree in sight….
Report this comment
Downunder: I think you will find a lot has changed in the four years since you left!
Report this comment
Ferret, I couldn’t agree more! It’s a shame that it used to be nice place to work in once upon a time…
Report this comment