Traffic has surged to the website of a West Midlands weekly after its local MP became one of the most high profile victims of the MPs’ expenses scandal.

The Bromsgrove Advertiser saw a huge spike in interest from local people as the UK media clamoured to cover the public demise of MP Julie Kirkbride.

Ms Kirkbride and her husband Andrew MacKay became embroiled in a public outcry after reports in the Daily Telegraph suggested they claimed money for second home allowances they were not entitled to.

After Mr MacKay was forced to resign his post by David Cameron, a similar fate befell his wife last week under pressure from her constituents.

During one week in May page impressions on bromsgroveadvertisier.co.uk were up 48pc while unique users surged by 55pc from the usual figure of around 3,000.

The news last week that Ms Kirkbride was standing down was also the most-commented upon story on the Advertiser’s website.

Clive Joyce, digital editorial development manager for Newsquest Stourbridge, told HTFP: “Bromsgrove has done particularly well and her story has been covered comprehensively in the paper and online.

“It’s great news for the company and the advertisers as so many more people are coming to the website.

“It’s a double whammy as her husband’s been implicated as well. The fact she’s married to him means that stories about Andrew Mackay have been on the website as well.

“This week’s edition of the paper is carrying two pages of letters as opposed to one, all caused by Julie Kirkbride.”

Comments

richard meredith (02/06/2009 11:40:11)
Helleluliah! So here is the ammunition needed by every editor worthy of leading his newsroom – eg that Quality journalists able to dig into places that others don’t, and given an hour or two away from the multi-tasking mayhem, can produce stories that INCREASE circulation and even, well blow me down, ‘great news for the advertisers’, as Clive Joyce says. Shame it had to be a national that showed the regionals how to do it, but let’s not quibble about that.