AddThis SmartLayers

Editor hails sex shop victory

A sex shop chain has backed out of a bid to open up in Brentwood after pressure from the town’s local paper.

The Brentwood Gazette’s victory follows an orchestrated campaign which galvanised local opinion and encouraged protests through petitions and individual objections.

The application for permission to open the store was opposed because it would have been in a busy area used by children.

Editor Roger Watkins said: “On this occasion the sex shop bosses have made their excuses and left but we are well aware they could be back. We shall be waiting.”

The Gazette’s leadership has been praised by the wider community.

Local MP and Shadow Minister Eric Pickles said: “Full credit to the Gazette for leading an important campaign which was more about what Brentwood might become than just the future of one shop unit.”

The Bishop of Brentwood, the Rt Rev Thomas McMahon, said: “I am pleased the Gazette took on this issue as it shows solidarity within the town.”

And young mother Katie Ward, who lives near the proposed sex shop, added: “The Gazette has been really, really supportive and that helped get a lot of people motivated to write in.”

During the campaign deputy news editor Ben Hall was sent to visit one of the company’s sex shops in London. He reported on the material available behind the blacked-out windows and concluded it was not the sort of place to which one would take one’s grandmother.

The campaign was backed up by strident opinion in the paper’s Comment column. When the sex shop application was first lodged a reader phoned editor Roger Watkins complaining of bias and saying the Gazette seemed to be against the sex shop.

This prompted the leader column to thunder: “Seem to be? The Gazette is happy, eager even, to help him and anyone else who doubts where we stand on this issue.

“There must be no confusion, no sitting on the fence, no namby-pamby dithering.

“We are unapologetically, unashamedly and unequivocally opposed to the opening of a sex shop.”

The Gazette acknowledged there was a demand for sex shops but pointed out that neighbouring towns had them and that Soho is only a short train ride away.

This week the Comment column says: “…it is a triumph for a vigorous, free Press perceptive and competent enough to articulate the feelings of its readers and willing to fight hard for the community it serves.”

It also warned that “Those who seek to fetter a free, independent and opinionated Press do so at their peril.”

Back to the campaigns index

Do you have a story about the regional press? Ring 0116 227 3122/3121, or
e-mail [email protected]