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Role of local newspapers to be highlighted in TV ad campaign

A television advertising campaign is to take place this month to highlight the role of local weekly newspapers as “the focal point of community life.”

The 30-second ad, entitled ‘Local Weekly Newspapers – With You All the Way’ has been put together by a group of independent titles and will be screened on Friday 21 February.

It will be shown on ITVs Central, West Country, Granada, Border, Yorkshire, Wales and West, Meridian, and Carlton regions with a 90-second extended version  featured on the weekly newspaper websites across the UK.

The TV campaign is organised by the Weekly Independent Newspaper Association (WINA) which represents small independent local publishers.

Joanna Parlby, chairman of WINA and managing director of tghe Newark Advertiser Media Group, said: “We are working to dispel some of the myths that local newspapers and the role they have in their communities may be under threat.

“We are confident that the closeness and trust we share with the readers and advertisers we have in every community in print and online will enable us to carry on serving them as we have done through the many economic upturns and downturns.”

Tindle Newspapers boss Sir Ray Tindle is spearheading the move which he announced at a conference of senior managers and other industry leaders including Newspaper Society director David Newell.

Said David: “Weekly newspapers are the cornerstone of the newspaper industry in the UK. They connect communities and businesses together in a way in which no other media can.

“Today marks the launch of a nationwide initiative to promote weekly newspapers and celebrate their success and their future.

“The Newspaper Society will play its full part in supporting the WINA campaign and in ensuring key opinion formers understand the central role weekly newspapers have in today’s media landscape.”

Sir Ray added:  “During the recession and throughout the whole of my 65 unbroken years in local newspapers, I have become well aware of how strong and well-established are the newspapers in the local press,”

“We shall continue for many years to come giving a vital service to the local communities of the UK.”

The animated ads will feature a character called Ray showing his life story as covered by his local newspaper.

Starting with his birth announcement, it also features his appearance in a nativity play, and his purchase of a business that was advertised in the paper.

4 comments

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  • February 10, 2014 at 11:32 am
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    Supposedly “small independent newspaper publishers” launch television advertising campaigns to promote their products.
    I didn’t realise that there were such creatures left in the regional media jungle.
    All of the weeklies around my way have been swallowed up by the corporate beasts and that much is patently obvious to even the most casual reader.
    Job ads for vacancies such as part-time cooks and cleaners are for positions 50 miles away from the circulation area.
    BMD’s have died the death.
    Display ads publicise rival businesses from far away.
    “News” is often syndicated general features from quangos and discredited bodies such as the Environment Agency.
    How much are the weeklies spending on this advertising campaign, and are the newspapers or their directors involved financially with the television companies?
    The Tindle Group cannot be described as a small publisher and many would question whether an operator like that with such an overt political agenda should own scores of newspapers.
    Finally, Communities Secretary Eric Pickles has gone on record as saying he is in favour of some kind of support for the regional press.
    Is the government indirectly subsidising this campaign?

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  • February 21, 2014 at 10:22 am
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    It features a character called Ray. Hmmn… wonder where they got that idea from?

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