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Ex-editor bounces back as council PR chief for former patch

mike-gilson-1A former regional daily editor is taking up a new job as a PR chief for two councils on his former patch.

Mike Gilson, left, has been appointed head of communications at Adur & Worthing Councils, in Sussex, after impressing the authorities’ chiefs with his “significant” newsroom experience.

Mike left Brighton-based daily The Argus, whose patch includes the Adur and Worthing areas, in December after two years at the helm.

His new role will see him take responsibility for communications at the councils, which have operated together under a joint management structure since 2008.

Alex Bailey, chief executive officer for Adur & Worthing Councils, said: “After a highly competitive recruitment process, I’m very pleased to be welcoming Mike to the Councils at a key point in our development.

“Mike’s significant experience running busy newsrooms will be invaluable in telling the stories of the communities within Adur and Worthing, and the Councils’ place within those narratives.

“We have set ourselves a significant agenda for the next three years and great communications will be at the heart of how we inspire conversations and actions on important issues throughout Adur and Worthing, and beyond.”

Mike will begin his new job on 27 March.

Before joining the Argus in 2014, he edited the Belfast Telegraph for five years, during which time it won the UK Regional Newspaper of the Year award in 2011, and he has also edited three Johnston Press owned titles – The Scotsman, The News, Portsmouth and the Peterborough Telegraph.

Mike was replaced at The Argus by Lucy Pearce, who herself quit just weeks into the job to move to the role of communications and engagement manager with financial services giant Legal and General.

Arron Hendy has since taken up the Newsquest-owned newspaper’s editorship.

7 comments

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  • March 10, 2017 at 8:22 am
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    Nothing better sums the state of the newspaper industry. Talented, experienced, hard-working editor (though even he could not halt the inevitable sales decline of the Argus) lost to a council job. The plus is that as more hacks join councils the press releases get better written.
    The irony is that Mike will be helping to fill up quite a few spaces in his old paper. At least he will have a life.

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  • March 10, 2017 at 10:49 am
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    For anyone hanging on in there putting up with heavier workloads, content chiefs only interested in churn and easy to obtain :e.g.: free content aftaid of leaving the sinking ship, this proves yet again there’s plenty of work out there for the best people along with a far better quality of life too.
    All good wishes to mike

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  • March 10, 2017 at 12:16 pm
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    Surely a case of game keeper turned poacher ! Sorry Mike. All the best.

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  • March 10, 2017 at 12:31 pm
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    Hotel 900. That’s a fair point about Worthing ( and indeed the rest of the county) but the damage was done long before Gilson arrived. The Argus long ago shed its talented team of district reporters, closed offices across Sussex and circled the wagons around Brighton. The once superb coverage of East and West Sussex evaporated into occasional bouts of cherry picking and circulation dived.
    For Gilson it was never going to be anything more than a holding action, the only surprise was that he went there, with sales of about 13,000 (about 11,000 I hear now).I am sure he will do a fine job where is going and be happier.

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  • March 10, 2017 at 3:55 pm
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    People will be commenting about PR, I’m sure he’s glad Regional Press is behind him. The golden years ended a while ago. Good Luck.

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  • March 10, 2017 at 4:14 pm
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    Hotel 900. You are the Sussex Police helicopter (or at least you have snaffled its callsign) and I claim my £10.

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