A regional daily’s youngest ever editor has resigned just weeks after taking the job.
Lucy Pearce is stepping down from the editorship of Brighton daily The Argus, which she took on after the announcement of Mike Gilson’s departure from the newspaper last month.
It is understoood that she is taking up a position as head of communications with a leading multinational financial services company.
Lucy, 28, was offered the new role shortly after she was promoted from her head of content position at The Argus.
A Newsquest spokesman said: “During the time of the recent changes at The Argus when Lucy Pearce was promoted to editor/head of content, she was also offered a senior role at another company.
“After much consideration Lucy has decided to accept the other role and we wish her all the best for the future.”
A replacement for Lucy has yet to be announced.
The paper is being overseen by Andy Parkes who was appointed group managing editor for Newsquest South London and Sussex at the time of Mike’s dpearture.
Lucy began her career at the Dorset Echo in 2009 and also worked for the news agency SWNS before joining The Argus in 2012.
Mike joined the South Coast title in December 2014 having previously edited four other UK regional dailies, but his departure from the paper was confirmed in December 2016.
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Kerching!
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Rather think Lucy made the right decision. The decline of this once superb paper down south in Sussex sums up the mess the local press has got itself into with the big companies. Good luck in 2017 to all down there at the Argus.
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I too think she has made the right decision, an ‘editorship’ is no longer the position of power in the regionals it once was, nowadays it’s simply the can carrying role for the faceless ones who call the shots, those prepared to dance to the tune of the content chiefs have little or no kudos in the business or in the local communities and are editors in name alone.
With more title closures expected,the need for an ‘editor’ will become pretty much non existent in 2017,
Probably why so many who’ve been hanging on in there have since left the industry.
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It’s a no-brainer. Take the money and run, Lucy.
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Good luck to Lucy and a good choice I would say,quite why any person with ambition and a talent for journalism under the age of 50 would want to take an editors role in an industry where editors are becoming more and more defunct is beyond me.
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Overseen from London. The final indignity. Local used to be local. Not any more.
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I monitor the pick-up rate of our magazine, HERE & NOW, from outlets across Worthing and was surprised to see The Argus available free of charge in the supermarkets I checked yesterday.
It still has the 65p cover price on it, and a place-holder in it’s normal position amongst the other paid-for papers saying it was free today from the dump-bin by the exit.
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The better choice I would say and I wish Lucy all the best in her chosen career.
Most regional editors these days fall into two categories:
1- those who’ve been around, probably far too long,clinging on for a nice little pay off when their number is called as inevitably it will
or 2- those ‘up through the ranks’ company men who won’t rock the boat and will agree and do everything their new meeeja bosses tell them to in the vain belief that the title ‘editor ‘ actually means anything these days.
The days of editors having the power and strength of character to challenge,fight and campaign are over and with newspapers rapidly becoming the poor relation to other fond of digital news the need for editors has gone too.
It will be very interesting to see how many editors leave the industry” to persue other interests ” this time next year
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Lucky Lucy is doing the best thing by fleeing.
Two locals near me are getting thinner, filled with frothy low grade “rhubarb” tales to fill up space fast, have few follow-ups to items handed out by police etc, have spelling howlers with even occasional wrong spellings of villages and districts, tip-offs about damn fine tales ignored, poor layouts, staff reductions, ad puffs, young sweat-shop reporters working extra hours and produced by robotic operatives from subbing hubs many miles away. Circulation figures show numbers, compared with, say, three years ago, are steadily slumping. All the above problems hasten the drop in sale with friends and neighbours telling me they’ve stopped buying their local organ. The end draws closer, I tell you.
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Good for Lucy. She has a career and future to think about and these days no one in newspapers knows their own longevity.
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What fools Newsquest are to let Mike Gilson go! So sad to hear such a young editor is jumping ship.
The Argus had come such a long way in the last two years, such a shame.
I feel for the reporters left behind, they’ve been doing some cracking work but need an editor who will stand by them.
Hopefully whoever the new editor is will let them do their jobs.
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