A senior digital executive has left a regional publisher to join one of its rivals in the second such move in recent months.
Steve Anglesey, pictured left, has been unveiled as Archant’s group digital content director, having previously served as digital content director at Local World.
At Archant, Steve will report to Matt Kelly, who was his old boss at Local World before becoming Archant’s chief content officer in October.
Steve joined Local World in November 2014, having previously worked as Trinity Mirror’s head of digital business development.
While with Local World, he helped reinvent late final editions on its daily titles by publishing them in mobile and tablet format.
The company also launched “weird news” platform Quirker in June 2015, which closed after seven months following Trinity Mirror’s takeover of Local World last autumn.
Steve has nearly 30 years of journalistic experience, including positions as assistant sports editor at the Daily Mirror and editor of its website.
His digital career began in 1998 on the pioneering website Football365, of which he was part of the launch team.
Said Steve: “Archant has an extensive portfolio of brands that sit right at the heart of the communities they serve, with an impressive history of creating innovative and engaging content.
“This talent, coupled with the ambition demonstrated to be the best local media owner in the UK, means it is a very exciting company to be joining. I’m looking forward to working with Matt and his colleagues to drive the digital content strategy forward.”
Matt added: “Steve’s appointment shows our continued commitment to being a relevant, audience-first publisher in our communities, be they geographical or by interest.
“He has terrific experience in digital publishing with a long and successful track record in delivering highly engaged digital audiences. This is a big appointment for us and we’re delighted to have landed someone with such proven capabilities.”
Steve takes up his new role on Monday and will primarily be based at Archant’s Norwich headquarters.
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Quirker was the finest “wacky” website of its breed and a benchmark – nay, a beacon of quality and integrity – for all of us in local journalism. Its reasonable costs and lavish returns, quickly recognised by TM, are legend in certain quarters to this day and we can only wait with bated breath for the next triumph from this highly geared duo. Perhaps Qubit technology is being mulled – just think of the Wackiness Potential there.
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Wish I had a friend at the top, seems to be the only way to get a pay rise here.
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” Steve’s appointment shows our continued commitment to being a relevant, audience-first publisher”
No, I’d say it gives a loud and clear message that the priority is digital over print as no new ‘exciting’editorial appointments have been announced or investments made in this side of the business other than an occasional shuffling of the same old faces within the same old pack.
Message recieved loud and clear
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View over the car park:
Watch this space matey.
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I thought he’d already left LW?
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Watches space eagerly for announcement of major investment in the news paper and print sides of the business, pay rises for all and the long awaited unveiling of new faces in the editorial team,and all in time for the shareholders meeting too!! can’t wait!!
Exciting times
To me, to you
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Dick Minim – We don’t do new technology, it scares the skippers. Remember, the loudest voice in the room is usually the most stupid.
Best of luck to the new patient at Prospect Rest Home, welcome to the future, can I get an PS upgrade boss?
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View over the car park:
watch your back matey.
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No doubt we can expect more digital demands emanating from The Norwich Massive sometime soon.
In other news, my own paper will soon be expected to publish pages and pages of generic content, centrally produced by helpful Archant HQ. These pages will include TV listings, which I believe were last demanded by readers when Ronnie Barker was doing Porridge. The idea of these pages being put into my paper is it will “free up” reporters to write more for the web.
What utter madness and sad we don’t have any brave or sane voices at HQ to step in and query the first big play of our new content chief.
These people will drive down sales, drive good papers over the cliff and then drive off to well paid jobs with the next company to fall for their blandishments.
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Altogether now – Archant ‘the way you want it to be’.
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Yet another ‘boss’ to join the ever growing number of bosses at Archant and another one with no newsprint or newspaper publishing experience.
remember the last ‘boss’ to join who actually produced revenue for the business ?
No, me neither
Exciting times ‘
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Are we allowed to nominate ex members of the Local World brains trust which Archant has to take off our hands?
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Extra..extra..late final, roll up get your digital late final here.
Brace yourselves peeps. Looks like more work for Archant editorial staff for no extra pay.
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TM Commercial Chap: Local World had a brains trust?????
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Whatever can you mean @hadrian bunnykins?
Back stabbing and watching your back at Archant ? Never!!
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You’ve got to have an audience to be an “audience first” publisher surely?
Perhaps that’s what they mean by ‘audience first’ as in ‘let’s get one’
They certainly had a print audience once but that was a few years ago and since then thousands have walked.
Any road up ,good luck in finding one and ideally before the shareholders meeting a week Friday ‘mateys’
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Have to say this was a genuinely good double act at Local World. Both good journalists and both strong on print and digital. But moan on regardless….!
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How to be a digital boss as far as I can see….
1. Write clickbait
2. Plaster articles with adverts.
sit back, play golf.
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Ten great shots which monkeys can perform when playing tennis anyone?
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A sales manager colleague of mine is currently waging a battle with the bland and the blind at HQ over an increase in salary for a top performer which I imagine equates to around one sixtieth of the wedge they are throwing at hires like this. It’s all a question of where you’re sat when it comes to allocation of resource ain’t it? From the top floor of Rouen Road the view probably seems just lovely but out here we take a rather different view of the guff about becoming the UK’s top regional media company.
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anyone who doesn’t see a digital director as an investment in journalism is probably beyond redemption. Did they make this much fuss when they moved away from vellum?
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I’m not sure what they actually do @trevor, do they need two to do it?
A group digital content director AND a chief content officer?
Sounds like a job creation scheme to me
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