A weekly newspaper will hold regular reporter surgeries at Sainsbury’s supermarket after moving out of town.
The Tyrone Times has set up a weekly clinic at the Sainsbury’s in Dungannon, with the first one taking place last Thursday from 10am to 3pm.
The Johnston Press title announced the launch of the surgeries to readers, which it said had been set up a result of its office move so they could share their stories with journalists.
In July, the Times moved out of Dungannon and is now based at the offices of sister title the Mid-Ulster Mail in Cookstown, ten miles away.
Damian Wilson, Northern Ireland group editor, said: “Johnston Press titles host reporter clinics in regional towns right across Northern Ireland and all have proved successful.
“The clinics have generated stories from the public we would not otherwise have got and we have also invited politicians and community groups to share the public platform with us.
“There is no substitute for meeting the public in their own domain and hearing their stories first hand and people seem a lot more willing to talk to reporters on these occasions than they do in a more formal office setting.
“Modern technology means reporters can get out from their offices and back into the community and the Tyrone Times news clinics are a good example of this strategy in action.”
In an article about the clinics, regional editor Peter Bayne said: “This is a great opportunity for our reporters to connect with our readers and for our readers to share the issues that matter to them.
“We will also be out and about around the town to keep our fingers very much on Dungannon’s pulse.
“Over the coming weeks and months we will be inviting along some very special guests for you to put them on the spot!
“I would take this opportunity to thank Sainsbury’s for kindly hosting our clinics. Please feel free to call in with us for a chat, and of course, a cup of tea or coffee.”
The Tyrone Times was one of just 14 paid-for weekly titles in the UK to record sales increases for the first half of the year, the latest ABCs showed, with its sales rising 3.5pc to 3,564.
Ireland managing director Jean Long told HTFP the circulation of the paper had continued to grow since the office move.
Sign up for our free daily email bulletin
Follow HTFP on Twitter
Got a story? Email the Editor at
This heading reads as if the reporters are having remedial sessions!
Report this comment
Be interesting to see what happens if a negative story about Sainsbury’s needs covering.
Report this comment
Will visitors get Nectar points?
Report this comment
“Ireland managing director Jean Long told HTFP the circulation of the paper had continued to grow since the office move.”
Interesting. I guess there might be other factors at play (have competitors left the market? Have they dropped cover price?) but, whatever they are, it’s good to read about sales increases.
Report this comment
The problem with this kind of thing is the lack of fact-checking and context: rumours are free to pose as fact until a responsible person sets them straight. Professional journalism doesn’t do things this way, but people always like being listened to. It’s painful when rubbish gets circulated – and shocking how fast/far it can travel – before needing to be put right. Damage to lives and reputations can sometimes never be put right.
Report this comment
We tried it for while. There was an endless stream of people wanting to chat with a reporter but sadly hardly anything newsworthy actually ever came up.
It was a decent effort as a PR exercise but in the end we decided to drop it.
Report this comment
You can smell the BS all the way over here in Derbyshire.
The way JP dress up these patches to a broken system is quite startling. As if a part-time desk in a shop makes up for an in-town office.
Report this comment
Meet the future….all over JP
Report this comment