Popular perceptions of the local press in Britain centre around images of newspapers printed on old-fashioned machinery, filled with reports of courts, councils, fetes and jumble sales, and the births, marriages and deaths of local citizens. Bob Franklin and Dave Murphy argue that this perception is long out-of-date. With almost 1,800 titles, including paid and free, morning, evening and weekly newspapers, the local press is a highly significant component both in local media networks and in the context of the British press as a whole. Many papers combine substantial circulation figures with high levels of advertising revenue and are likely to be the single most important source of news for many households in the area. And, at a time when large sections of the national press are speaking with the same monotonously right-wing voice, the local press can provide a relatively open and pluralistic forum for political debate. What News? examines recent developments which have radically altered many aspects of the organisation, production and content of the local press.
The rapid growth of free newspapers, the introduction and application of new printing technology and shifting structures of ownership are investigated and related to the wider context of the national media.