DOUBLE EXPOSURE Photographers and editors navigate copyright minefield - MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL UNION OF JOURNALISTS
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M A G A Z I N E O F T H E N AT I O N A L U N I O N O F J O U R N A L I S T S
WWW.NUJ.ORG.UK | JUNE/JULY 2021
DOUBLE
EXPOSURE
Photographers and editors
navigate copyright minefield
Contents
“
Main feature
12 Copyrights and wrongs
Minefield for creators and editors
C
opyright is a minefield both for
News
photographers who have their images
3 Pay cut staff to get £4m
used without permission and for Reach backs down after legal action
conscientious editors who attempt to 4 Police spied on journalists
do the right thing but find themselves Inquiry reveals undercover cops
the subject of claims. In our cover feature
Natasha Hirst, chair of the photographers’ 5 ‘Fire and rehire’ attacked
council, highlights the problems and ways to overcome them. NUJ urges an end to the tactics
Natasha is also now the union’s vice president following the 6 Union’s delegate meeting
delayed delegate meeting. The biennial meeting was due to Reports from the virtual conference
be held last year but was derailed because of the pandemic.
Features
In common with other unions’ recent conferences, the NUJ’s
delegate meeting in May was held virtually via a combination
of a zoom webinar and a voting platform. 10 Spotlight on Cardiff
However smoothly virtual conferences go, they are still Exploring the city’s media landscape
strange events and wrangles with mute/unmute are inevitable.
But the meeting was brilliantly chaired by president Sian Jones 14 Stories of our lives
who was endlessly professional, patient and good-humoured, Clickbait chasers or sleuths?
making it much more human than it could have been. 16 Vietnam lies
Delegates voted for union subscription rates to increase for
Looking back to 1971
the first time in seven years after warnings that the union could
face a forced merger if its income wasn’t increased. Delegates
also voted for The Journalist to be brought back as a print copy Regulars
for those who opt for print. Hopefully it will soon land on
members’ doormats again. 21 Technology
22 Obituaries
25 And finally...
Christine Buckley
Editor
@mschrisbuckley
Editor
journalist@nuj.org.uk
Design
Surgerycreations.com
info@surgerycreations.com
Advertising
Melanie Richards
Tel: 07494975239
ads@journalistmagazine.co.uk
Print
Warners
www.warners.co.uk
Distribution
GB Mail
www.gb-mail.co.uk
NUJ
72 Acton Street
London WC1X 9NB
info@nuj.org.uk
www.nuj.org.uk
Tel: 020 7843 3700
Manchester office
”
nujmanchester@nuj.org.uk
Glasgow office
nujscotland@nuj.org.uk
Dublin office
info@nuj.ie
ISSN: 0022-5541
Cover picture
Paul Pateman
Ray
Snoddy
Page 19
Arts
Page
20
02 | theJournalist
news
Reach to pay back £4 million to inbrief...
employees who had pay cut
ONE IN 10 WOULD PAY
FOR ONLINE NEWS
“
Only 10 per cent of people are
willing to pay for online news
REACH, publisher of the take any reimbursement. compared with 47 per cent for films
Mirror, the Express and many Last year, as the pandemic and TV shows and 33 per cent for
regional news titles, is to pay began to grip the industry, music, according to a survey
back up to £4 million to the NUJ had criticised the fact commissioned by Stripe, an online
employees who had pay cuts Jim Mullen, chief executive We look forward to payment technology company that
imposed for three months at and Simon Fuller, chief works with groups such as News
the start of the coronavirus financial officer, had been discussing with the UK and Substack.
crisis last year.
The move followed action Around a fifth of all Reach
paid nearly £300,000 in
bonuses and shares of about
company how all our
by the NUJ through an staff were put on furlough at £1 million from the members will finally ARCHANT STARTS TO
HIRE JOURNALISTS
employment tribunal claim
on behalf of a group of staff.
the start of the pandemic,
receiving 90 per cent of their
company’s long-term
incentive plan.
get their money back Archant, the Norwich-based
Initially the publisher agreed wages. The publisher claimed NUJ general secretary regional publisher, is recruiting
to pay the group which was £7 million from the Michelle Stanistreet said: Michelle Stanistreet about a dozen journalists including
mounting the tribunal claim government in 2020 to cover “This is great news for our NUJ general secretary seven reporters and an editor in
but then a few weeks later the 80 per cent of pay which members who struggled to East Anglia, two magazine editors
broadened the offer to all the government guaranteed instantly adapt to working in London and Essex and editorial
staff who had suffered the under the furlough scheme from home at the start of the assistants in the south west and
pay cut. which Reach is no longer Covid crisis while at the same north of England.
The union had argued that using. time they were forced to
the pay cut, which was not Reach said that although endure a hefty pay cut.
agreed with staff, breached staff will be reimbursed the “We look forward to IFJ CALLS FOR AFP TO
employment contracts. A board and executive discussing with the company REHIRE ABU BAKR
one-off payment will be made committee, who took pay how all our members will The International Federation of
in September. cuts of 20 per cent, will not finally get their money back.” Journalists has called for the
reinstatement of Nasser Abu Bakr,
president of the Palestinian
Government call for safety evidence Journalists Syndicate (PJS),
following his sacking by French
The NUJ is urging all UK members to journalism, policing, prosecution You can complete the survey here: news agency AFP after 20 years of
submit evidence about threats and services and civil society. It published https://dcms.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/ work. His dismissal followed AFP’s
attacks to the government’s National an action plan and the evidence form/SV_cPdjWUrlJ2IrPo2 concerns over his strong defence of
Committee for the Safety of Journalists. gathered by the government will add An NUJ survey last year found that the rights of Palestinian journalists.
The NUJ is a member of the to the measures contained in the plan. more than half of respondents had
committee which brings together key The deadline for submissions is been abused online and nearly a
representatives of government, 11.45pm Wednesday July 14. quarter had been physically assaulted.
Windfall for NUJ charities Recognition win
at openDemocracy
THE UNION’S charities – NUJ help journalists in times of The NUJ has won recognition at
Extra and the George Viner need and help black and openDemocracy, the media group which says it
fund – have received a ethnic minority journalism seeks to educate citizens to challenge power
significant boost from students. and encourage democratic debate. Adam
branches donating money Earlier this year Glasgow Bychawski, a staff NUJ rep, said: “We are
they would ordinarily have branch donated £7,000 each really pleased that openDemocracy’s NUJ
spent on hiring venues and to NUJ Extra and the George chapel has been voluntarily recognised.
funding meetings. Like the Viner fund.
Unionising is crucial to achieving
NUJ’s central operations, Many journalists have
openDemocracy’s mission of challenging
branches have saved large turned to NUJ Extra for help
amounts of money because during the pandemic because power and inspiring change. We are
the lockdown restrictions their work dried up and they looking forward to working with
have stopped travel and also fell through the cracks of management to ensure we
face-to-face meetings. the government support live and breathe those values
Last year £32,000 was system which excluded many in our workplace.”
raised for the charities which freelance workers.
theJournalist | 03
news
Undercover police targeted
journalists, spycops inquiry reports
“
UNDERCOVER police spied on journalists, the Undercover The SDS report says: “The meeting discussed policy for the
Policing Inquiry (UCPI) revealed at its opening, writes paper. It was agreed it should maintain its present format,
Matt Salusbury. although more emphasis would be made that the struggle in
The UCPI is examining the conduct of Vietnam was identical with the class war being
undercover Metropolitan Police units the fought in other capitalist societies.” The NUJ was not
Special Demonstration Squad (SDS) – The now deceased author’s blacked-out name
founded in 1968 – and the National Public is replaced with ‘HN338’. A restriction order surprised that the
Order Intelligence Unit that replaced it in makes it an offence to reveal his real name. Special Branch was
1999. Undercover officers from these units John Hendy QC, representing trade unions, in
spied on more than 1,000 political and his opening statement to the inquiry referred to a interfering with
campaigning groups over many years.
The inquiry opened with tranche 1,
Special Branch index card from 1973 showing its
Industrial Intelligence Unit kept files on several
editorial meetings in
part 1, covering 1968-1973. trade unions. Two newspapers featured in the the early 1970s
When the opening statements were same filing index – the Morning Star and
being made last November, inquiry lawyer Socialist Worker.
David Barr QC described a Special Branch In response to these disclosures, the NUJ said it
report from 1971, which cited intelligence was “not surprised that the Special Branch was
gathered by an SDS officer. attending and interfering with editorial meetings
The report, dated June 25 1971, in the early 1970s”.
describes “a meeting of the editorial The part 1, tranche 2 of the UCPI was in
board” of Indochina, the magazine of the progress as The Journalist went to press, hearing
Vietnam Solidarity Campaign – the only publication on UCPI’s evidence from 1973-1982. So far, this has included the
long list of organisations infiltrated by SDS in this period. revelation that SDS officer Richard Clark worked his way up to
Indochina had a “British complicity” column, cataloguing the national secretariat of the Troops Out Movement and was
British support for the Vietnam War. Not everyone had the skills briefly its acting leader. The inquiry is not expected to conclude
needed to produce a magazine using early 1970s technology. In until 2026 at the earliest. Between now and then, expect
that time of the closed shop, when many employers hired only further disclosures about surveillance of journalists.
union members, it is likely some of the Indochina editorial Matt Salusbury is chair of the NUJ London Freelance Branch
board were in the NUJ. and a UCPI core participant
General secretary returns unopposed commitment of our members,
lay activists and staff.
MICHELLE STANISTREET is to It is the third time that Sian Jones, NUJ president, “Michelle’s unanimous “We will continue to
serve a third term as general Michelle, the first woman to said: “At a time of enormous re-election reflects the high defend members’ terms and
secretary of the NUJ. At the be NUJ general secretary challenge, we have been very standing in which she is held conditions and to defend
close of nominations, she and a former deputy general fortunate to have such a in all sections of our union.” public interest journalism at
was the only candidate in secretary, has been returned committed, hardworking, and Michelle said: “The union’s a time when media freedom
the election. unopposed. innovative general secretary. strength lies in the is under threat.”
Scan here if you care
about journalism.
04 | theJournalist
news
Pressure rises over firing inbrief...
and rehiring on worse terms
REACH DIGITAL AD
SALES BEAT PRINT
“
Digital advertising revenue has
overtaken print for the first time at
THE NUJ has joined the TUC and a coalition of Newsquest issued the termination notices Reach, which publishes the Mirror,
sister unions and politicians calling on the after NUJ members at the titles rejected a Express and Star and many regional
government to introduce measures to end proposal to end time-and-a-half pay for titles. Digital revenues were up 35
fire-and-rehire moves. working on bank holidays (excluding Christmas per cent year on year between
The union is tackling fire and rehire tactics Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day). We are horrified to see early December and late April. Print
revenue was down 10.4 per cent
in the media industry where
companies use the threat of job
This would affect around 15 journalists,
with the greatest impact falling on
such tactics used by a year on year.
losses or actual dismissals to the newsdesk, the sports reporter paper that presents
force through inferior terms and the sole remaining sub, who
and conditions. are most likely to work on bank itself as a watchdog of NATIONAL WORLD
Michelle Stanistreet,
NUJ general secretary,
holidays. Reporters already
work many hours overtime to
democracy and SAVES £4 MILLION
David Montgomery’s National World
said: “Trading on cover for redundancies and accountability has made £4 million in annual cost
people’s fear to strongarm unfilled vacancies. savings at JPI Media. The group,
them into taking pay cuts Anna Wagstaff, secretary of which bought the regional
or accepting poorer the Oxford and district NUJ Anna Wagstaff publisher in December, expects to
contractual terms is disgraceful branch, said: “The practice of Oxford and district NUJ find another £1 million this year.
behaviour that the prime minister ripping up staff contracts to force branch The savings will be spent on
should kick into touch.” through worse terms and conditions has been decentralising newsrooms.
Recently, the union condemned a move to widely condemned not just by trade unions but
terminate the contracts of journalists working by MPs across the political spectrum. We are
at the Oxford Mail and The Oxford Times, with horrified to see such despotic tactics being used FORMER SUN CHIEF
re-employment being conditional on by a local paper that likes to present itself as a REPORTER KAY DIES
accepting worse terms and conditions. watchdog of democracy and accountability.” Former Sun chief reporter John Kay
has died aged 77. Kay retired from
The Sun after a 48-year career in
Recognition win at Iran station to finally sign a recognition
agreement. This is a real
journalism in 2015 after being
acquitted of conspiracy to commit
THE UNION has won This means union members broadcasts from London. tribute to our members who misconduct in public office under
recognition at TV broadcaster will have a say in negotiating Launched in 2017, it employs have fought hard to achieve Operation Elveden. He got many
Iran International after a pay, hours and holidays and nearly 150 journalists. this. We look forward to scoops for the paper, including an
long campaign by NUJ will be properly represented Paul Siegert, NUJ national working more closely with advance of the Queen’s ‘annus
members and officials to in decision making. broadcasting organiser, said: management in the future horribilis’ Christmas broadcast.
achieve a formal voluntary Iran International is owned “After more than two years of and I’m sure this agreement
agreement. by Volant Media and hard work, we are delighted will benefit everyone.”
Lessons on how to deal with abuse Jon Snow to
quit as Channel 4 anchor
JOURNALISM students should be trained to cope with online Jon Snow is to step down after 32 years
abuse, a study has recommended. of presenting Channel 4 News at the end of
The study in the Journal of the Association for Journalism
this year. Snow, 73, will continue to do some
Education found abuse is now “more commonplace, more vile
work for the broadcaster, fronting special
and more serious” and it can damage young journalists’
reports and other projects. He will also carry
emotional wellbeing and lead them to doubt their abilities.
It said: “Opening up out charity work. Snow is Channel 4 News’
conversation during longest-serving presenter and has worked
at ITN, which produces news programmes
MAX GRIZAARD / ALAMY STOCK PHOTO
journalism training is vital to
prepare students for what for Channel 4, ITV and Channel 5, for
they might face.” 45 years. In the 1980s, he served as
The study was carried out Washington correspondent and
by Jenny Kean, who leads the diplomatic editor before becoming
MA Journalism programme the anchor of Channel 4
at Leeds Trinity University, News in 1989.
and Yorkshire Evening Post
reporter Abbey Maclure.
theJournalist | 05
NUJ subscriptions to rise for
the first time in seven years
SUBSCRIPTIONS to the NUJ earning over £29,000.
are to rise by between 13 per Monthly subscriptions are:
cent and 16 per cent over the £15 (€18) for grade 1; £18
next two years after delegates (€23) for grade 2; and £25
voted for the first increase in (€31) for grade 3.
seven years. Those rates will rise from
The annual delegate July this year to: £16 (€19) for
meeting – postponed from grade 1; £20 (€25) for grade
“
last year because of the 2; and £28 (€34) grade 3.
pandemic and held virtually From July 2022, the rates
in May – was told that the will increase again: grade 1 will
future of the union was at pay £17 (€20) – a rise of 13.3
stake and that, without an Other cost-saving measures to increase subscriptions. It per cent; grade 2 will pay
increase, the NUJ could be were brought in to address was seconded by Joyce £21 (€26) an increase of 16.6
forced to seek a merger with anticipated effects of McMillan of the Edinburgh per cent; and grade 3 will pay Journalists need an
another union.
Chris Frost, chair of the
the pandemic.
The union has also saved
freelance branch, who told
delegates that journalists
£29 (€35) – a rise of
16 per cent.
independent voice
union’s finance committee, a large amount of money needed an independent voice A two-thirds majority of and union – a union
said that the union faced from not holding meetings and union – one that could votes at the delegate meeting
increasing costs, especially and therefore not incurring offer the high level of service is required to change that can offer the high
from pension deficit costs of travel, accommodation that the NUJ offers. subscriptions. A motion to level of service that
payments which were to rise and compensation for loss At present, members are change this to a simple
from £8,500 per month to of earnings. divided into three grades majority was defeated. the NUJ offers
£17,750. The delegate meeting, depending on their income, Another motion allowing
Last year, the NUJ’s which is usually held at a with grade 1 earning up to new joiners to pay half
full-time staff agreed to work seaside venue, normally costs £20,000 (€24,000), grade 2 of the full subscription rate Joyce McMillan
a four-day week for a modest about £150,000. earning £20,001-£29,000 for the first two years of their Edinburgh freelance
pay cut to save money. Chris proposed the motion (€36,000), and grade 3 membership was carried. branch
working group which would make
NEC criticised over restructuring inaction recommendations for the NEC to
table at DM 2020.
THE UNION’S national executive Kevin Palmer, from the newly and West Yorkshire said: “The “The development committee
council was accused of having created Leeds and West Yorkshire NEC mandated its development consulted members over the
‘kicked into the long grass’ an order branch, said that he was sub-committee to coordinate this summer of 2019 but by late
from the previous delegate meeting disappointed that a motion calling structure review under the leadership November the NEC working group
to restructure the union in light of on the union to investigate a of the assistant general secretary, to had not been convened.
changes in workplaces, membership restructuring appeared not to have comprise union-wide consultation. “Members are disappointed that
and the way members interact with progressed very far. “The findings should have been an opportunity has apparently
the union. A late notice motion from Leeds discussed by an NEC-appointed been wasted.”
Joining the union to be simplified
A MOVE to make joining the NUJ easier and The branch’s motion said: “DM recognises
more straightforward for new and younger that the requirement to name a proposer and
journalists was backed. seconder is more honoured in the breach than
Ruby Lott-Lavigna, of the London independent in the observance. It ceased to be a reason to
broadcasting and new media branch, told reject applicants many years ago and can be
delegates the requirements for proposers and confusing to applicants who may know no
seconders looked archaic to many young other members of the NUJ.”
journalists in non-unionised workplaces. She Ruby added that union jargon could be
said the requirements could be problematic for counterproductive and the NUJ had to look to
those who did not know union members. the future and not to the past.
6 | theJournalist
Delegate Meeting
Violence against journalists in brief...
grows on the streets and online
UNION’S FULL NAME
TO BE RETAINED
A move to change the union’s name
from National Union of Journalists to
JOURNALISTS have faced an Anton also referred to a just the acronym NUJ, failed. The
escalation of violence since serious assault on name change had been proposed by
the last delegate meeting photographer Kevin Scott the London independent
amid growing attacks from while he was covering a riot. broadcasting and new media branch
the far right, anger over He said: “A message has to to reflect the broadening of the
media workers doing their go out from this conference union’s membership to include those
“
jobs on the streets and the to all our members, if you are employed in non-traditional
pandemic’s lockdown threatened, trolled or journalism roles.
restrictions. attacked then immediately
Anton McCabe (pictured) contact the union.”
for the national executive Last year a campaign MEETINGS TO CARRY
council tabled a late notice for more safeguards for ON AS BIENNIALS
motion condemning rising led to the NUJ being If you are threatened, London central branch attempted to
increase the frequency of delegates
physical and verbal abuse
against journalists. He said:
represented on the UK
government’s National
trolled or attacked meeting from the current biennial
"This union will not accept Committee for the Safety of then immediately arrangement to annually with policy
attacks on or abuse of our Journalists. meetings being arranged for those
members, we have shown A second late notice contact the union years when the full delegate
that, by our response to the He highlighted the threats motion focused on Northern meeting was not taking place.
murder of Lyra McKee and the against women journalists Ireland where there has been However, not enough delegates
union’s reaction to threats and NUJ members including an increase in threats by Anton McCabe voted for the move which the
to our members in Northern Patricia Devlin, Allison Morris paramiliatary groups against national executive national executive council had
Ireland." and Amy Fenton. journalists. council costed at £100,000 a year.
MEETING IN NUMBERS
Black members’ clause deleted AND PERSONNEL
This year’s delegate meeting
A CLAUSE in a motion from the black amendment by the national executive called on the executive council to involved 252 attendees, 50 branches
members council which called on the council calling for its deletion. reinvigorate the union’s code of and 153 had voting rights. The next
NUJ to examine its employment of Afterwards, Marc Wadsworth, chair conduct; organise a one-day conference meeting will be in April 2023. Sian
black people, at all levels and take of the black members council, said the to promote public awareness of the Jones, president since 2018, handed
up issues of unconscious bias and amendment had rendered the motion code and to review and develop over to Pierre Vicary, a BBC World
institutional racism was removed after toothless. best practice of the coverage of race Service journalist. The vice president
a majority of delegates backed an The motion ,as it was amended, relations issues. is Natasha Hirst, chair of the
equality and photographers councils.
Equality merger NUJ Extra told to
idea rejected drop amazon smile
The NUJ’s charity NUJ Extra, which provides
help for journalists in hard times, has been
A CALL to merge the NUJ’s four equality councils – equality, black instructed to seek alternative fundraising
members, disabled members and 60+ -into one equality body to Amazon Smile because of concerns over
was rejected by delegates.
employment rights at Amazon. When people shop
The motion had been put by Kevin Palmer of Leeds and West
on Amazon Smile the retail giant donates 0.5 per
Yorkshire branch. He likened a merged union council to the UK’s
Equalities and Human Rights Commission which was created to cent of the purchase price to chosen charities of
replace three previous bodies. which NUJ Extra is one. Delegates were told that
But Natasha Hirst, chair of the the NUJ’s equality council, Amazon is in dispute with unions in
said that the merged commission had led to a dilution of its several countries, including the UK and the
work and that the existence of the equality councils in the NUJ unions are attempting to
provides spaces and voices for members who are often secure recognition and
marginalised. improved working
She said that merging the councils would not send out a conditions.
message of inclusion to members.
theJournalist | 7
Delegate Meeting
Call to return The Journalist to
print amid cost-benefit analysis
Simon Chapman, vice-chair of freelance branch for a
the council, said many cost-benefit analysis of the
members wanted print and publication of The Journalist
should be given the choice. and a feasibility study of
Paul Whitlock from the replacing it with a daily online
Bristol branch said there was a publication.
real need for the NUJ to have Moving the motion, Gerard
a print version of its magazine. Cunningham said the call
However, James Doherty was not a criticism of the
from the Glasgow branch said magazine, which he ‘loved’
“
the union did not have the and which reflected the union.
resources for the ‘luxury’ of He said: “I want to keep
posting the magazine to reading The Journalist. I want
members and that it was to emphasise that.”
DELEGATES called for unable to access the easily accessible online. Seconding, Tim Gopsill, the
The Journalist to go back into magazine online easily it also He said the money saved previous editor of The
print as soon as practical. risked health and safety could be diverted to staff Journalist and a delegate Not having The
The suspension of print
copies began in spring 2020
because journalists needed a
break from screens amid an
expenditure following the
full-time staff’s temporary
from London freelance
branch, said the idea of a
Journalist in print
as a response to feared online overload and it made move to a four-day week. daily update was a good one. made a nonsense
financial difficulties caused by a nonsense of the union In a right of reply, Rachel He said he had tried to initiate
the pandemic. fighting to preserve print said it was a ‘little naïve’ to such a thing but the union of the union
Rachel Broady (pictured) media. think there was no digital had not been ready for it. fighting to preserve
moved a motion from the Rachel said the union divide and that referring to The motion was opposed
Manchester and Salford should recognise the work of the hard work of the staff was by Francis Sedgemore from print media
branch which said that not the three-times elected editor ‘an appeal to emotion’. the freelance industrial
having The Journalist in print of The Journalist. The motion was carried. council. He said the magazine
served to exacerbate a digital The motion was seconded However, delegates also had the greatest reach of all Manchester and Salford
divide, with some people by the photographers’ council. backed a call from the Dublin the union’s communications. branch
The need to switch off after work that found people who worked
mainly from home were less than
THE UNION has been urged to lobby of the heightened blurring of the had been incorporated into a code of half as likely to be promoted as other
for laws guaranteeing journalists the distinction between work and home practice in the Republic of Ireland. workers and around 38 per cent less
right to disconnect from work phone life during the pandemic when many It also urged action to encourage likely on average to receive a bonus.
calls and emails outside working journalists worked from home. employers to adopt policies to Shayan Sardarizadeh, from the
hours. The motion noted that the prevent those working from home World Service branch, said editors
The motion, moved by David European Parliament had recently from being denied support, training routinely asked staff to work outside
Gallagher of the BBC London debated the need to give workers a and promotion. This follows an office hours and that the union
branch, urged the action in the light right to disconnect and such a right Office for National Statistics study needed to act on it quickly.
Three made members of honour
THE NUJ’S latest members of honour -Gary Ronan Brady of the Irish Executive paid tribute
Younge, Aiden White and Mary Curtin - were to White, a former International Federation of
praised for their union activism and high Journalists leader. He said: “There are no nobles
quality journalism and as ambassadors ot in our world but Aiden White comes very close.”
the union. Younge was recognised for his work at The
NUJ Irish secretary Séamus Dooley said Guardian. He was father of chapel and used to
Curtin, a veteran of the Irish anti-apartheid say: “Victory is always certain – you just don’t
movement, personified all that was best about know when.” Former Guardian editor Alan
the NUJ, had a forensic grasp of detail and Rusbridger said he would always drive a hard
never sought the limelight. bargain and was on the side of the troops.
08 | theJournalist
viewpoint
The unequal race for
the Welsh media crown
The odds are stacked against the hyperlocals, says Alan Evans
N
ews is not in short sustaining local news sites. Subscription, Herald Newspapers days before the
supply in Wales. Turn not-for-profit and partnership models launch.
any corner and you are were all tried and tested. Nation Cymru launched Nation in
likely to find a story. The Achilles heel was and continues 2017 with the tagline ‘national media
People are always to be the monetisation of these sites for Wales’. It would, however, have made
willing to share their troubles and, despite millions of people turning to more sense to use the tagline ‘Welsh
despite the pandemic with most up-to-the-minute local news delivered nationalist media for Wales’ given its
people living behind four walls night straight to their inbox for free. blatant political agenda of supporting
and day, news still happens. It is safe to say that the hyperlocals independence for Wales. S4C, another
Wales has a large number of news have become a free public news service big player, is also getting ready to
outlets but most are running with propped up by whatever funds they launch an expanded online national
fewer and fewer paid journalists. A can access and desperately vying for news outlet.
mini crisis has been brewing for years, any advertisers who may be After the dust has settled in this scrap
specifically the dearth of Welsh disillusioned with the big players. for the crown, perhaps Wales will
language content news. It didn’t take long for the big players emerge with the remnants of a cloth
The monopoly on who reports that to cotton on to what these small outfits woven out of battle to truly represent
news has long been held by the big were doing and, pretty soon, the online the thoughts, views, culture, community
players such as Reach, Newsquest and hyperlocal model was being cloned and needs of the people of the nation.
the BBC, which led the Welsh into their sites. Until then, the big players will sit
Government to conduct an inquiry A lifeline was thrown by the BBC, comfortably in their ivory towers in
into the state of the media in Wales. which has long been considered the smart and trendy Cardiff, only daring
What it found was not surprising. mainstay of national news for Wales. to set foot in the rural wastelands if
“
Towns were being abandoned by Perhaps as a consequence of pressure there has been a major disaster. Even
long-established newspaper titles, from the Welsh Government or from then, they may opt just for a Getty
which moved east towards the bright the hyperlocals, the BBC decided to image and a Zoom call to the man in
lights of Cardiff and, in some cases, launch its local democracy reporters the street.
London. How could these outlets cover scheme, which saw hyperlocals benefit Hyperlocal and independent news
important local stories? The truth is from ready-made news content. That providers in the country may be
that they couldn’t. Papers were filled news was also hoovered up by the big It didn’t take long jostling to call themselves the new
with homogenised, shared content. players, however, so the playing field national media for Wales. However, it is
Enter the hyperlocal news sloped in their favour yet again. for the big players a small place and advertising revenue
movement, rapidly supported by the As it stands today, it seems that to cotton on to what or the lack of it is what will make or
establishment of the Independent someone or other in Wales is laying break these small businesses and
Community News Network. claim to the crown of national news the hyperlocals not-for-profits.
Some hyperlocal outlets, run
predominantly by former local paper
provider for Wales as often as the rain
falls on the nation.
were doing and Despite the good intentions of so
many people trying to offer something
journalists, attempted to establish print Rather than acknowledge and work their online model different, minnows that swim with the
titles. Sadly, the public did not appear to with existing models such as Wales sharks inevitably get swallowed up.
be ready to buy a thin newspaper packed News Online, which has been growing was soon being Funding seems to be the last hope for
”
with local stories, having historically rapidly over the last two years cloned by them many, including Llanelli Online.
and loyally purchased the town’s reporting on news from across Wales,
weekly paper packed with ads for cars. Newsquest teamed up with Herald
Hyperlocals mainly went online and Newspapers to set up the National with Alan Evans is editor of
pioneered ways of engaging and Newsquest this year, splitting from Llanelli Online
theJournalist | 09
Cardiff
Spotlight on...
Ruth Addicott explores Although the pandemic has left the newsroom largely
empty, working remotely allowed a better work/life balance.
the city’s media landscape “I would stay in our newsroom until 6:45pm after the main
news show – now I file at around 4 o’clock and carry on with
my day,” says Osborne. “All our newsroom meetings are over
Zoom now, so no need to hang around waiting. It’s a world
away from finishing work late, running to the supermarket
W
hether you’re a rugby fan or not, the and getting home at 8pm.”
atmosphere in Cardiff on International day is Award-winning columnist Carolyn Hitt, who has written for
undeniably special. When Wales score, the the Western Mail for more than 25 years, says a major challenge
roar can be heard for miles – and it’s not just during the pandemic has been deciding what to write.
the stadium crowd but the whole nation on “We’ve all experienced those Zoom gatherings where we
its feet. With a heritage of newspapers dating back more than joke to each other that we haven’t got much to say because
150 years, a thriving broadcast sector and an internationally we haven’t done anything or been anywhere and sometimes
recognised school of journalism, the Welsh capital is a it’s felt the same when choosing something to write about,”
magnet not only for rugby but also for media. she says. “Getting the tone right has been crucial.”
A short walk from the stadium, the new BBC Cymru Wales Hitt co-founded all-woman production company Parasol
building in Central Square employs around 1,200 staff and Media in 2012 and produces monthly arts programme The
is set to expand as part of the drive to shift the creative and Review Show for Radio Wales. She has also done numerous
journalistic centre away from London. The studios deliver documentaries, including a previously unknown history of
TV programmes for BBC iPlayer, BBC One Wales and BBC Two class and racial prejudice in rugby, and Hidden Heroines, a
Wales in English and on BBC iPlayer and S4C in Welsh. Shows multimedia production that began with a campaign to get
include BBC Wales Today, Doctor Who, Casualty, Keeping Wales its first-ever statue of a named woman.
Faith, Hidden and Rhod Gilbert’s Work Experience. Hitt has lived in Cardiff since 1997 and seen huge change,
ITV Cymru Wales has studios in Cardiff and Welsh language particularly at Cardiff Bay, which is buzzing with bars and
broadcaster S4C has a base there, although its main office is restaurants, alongside the Wales Millennium Centre (home
in Carmarthen. of Welsh National Opera) and the Senedd (home to the
In terms of radio, BBC Wales has three stations – Radio Welsh Parliament).
Wales (in English), and Radio Cymru and Radio Cymru 2 “Devolution has made an impact, particularly during the
(in Welsh). Commercial stations such as Heart (owned by pandemic when people have realised just how many powers
Global) have studios in Cardiff Bay. There are also Nation the Welsh Government has and the importance of reflecting
Radio and award-winning Radio Cardiff. which serves the differences between Westminster and the Senedd,” she says.
PHILIP REES PHOTOGRAPHY
multicultural communities. The main newspaper publisher in Cardiff is Media Wales
“So many broadcasters start out in their careers in Cardiff (owned by Reach), which produces the Western Mail, the
and it’s a great place to start,” says Rob Osborne, national South Wales Echo, Wales on Sunday and WalesOnline. There’s
correspondent for ITV Cymru Wales. Osborne, who was also local paper The Penarth Times. The recently launched
named Journalist of The Year (2017) at the Wales Media The National (Newsquest) is based in Newport, and has
Awards, presents weekly topical programme Sharp End. correspondents throughout Wales, as does Herald.Wales.
10 | theJournalistopportunities
Learn, work, live he says. “Ever since, I’ve
nagged my colleagues to
a few Welsh phrases as a
courtesy and explore what
Valley venture
With opportunities to work
apply and many have gained devolution means here in the remotely, you may not need
Training and the mentoring scheme run a place on the scheme.” context of health, education to live in a city. “Head to the
mentoring by the John Schofield Trust; etc, as it will affect the way valleys,” says Osborne. “Get
BBC, ITV and S4C offer he wanted a mentor who Contacts and culture you cover stories. There are to know Wales and its people.
journalism trainee schemes worked in the industry but Journalist Carolyn Hitt says: several Facebook groups for Surround yourself with green
and scholarships in Wales. in a different company. “I had “My advice would be to freelancers and people in the hills and lovely lakes. I suspect
ITV Wales correspondent Paul Harrison who was then research Wales, appreciate Welsh media worth joining to over the next decade that’s
Rob Osborne recommends Sky’s royal correspondent,” its cultural differences, learn make connections.” what more people will do.”
Magazines and online publications range from Cardiff
Life, Buzz and Wales Business Insider to Style of the City and
QUOTES use TikTok or analytics or I’m great with video editing – I’m
also really eager to work hard for your brand’.”
Grangetown Community News. “Great shopping; plenty Speaking Welsh will open up more opportunities but is not
Jane Cohen works for press agency Wales News Service and of green space, a essential, he adds.
writes for weekly women’s magazines. She has covered all fabulous stadium and, Tirion Davies is a Welsh and journalism student and editor
sorts of stories from a grandmother who gave birth to her within an hour, you can in chief of Gair Rhydd. “I’ve made hundreds of contacts over
own grandchild to a woman who met her husband when she be in the mountains or the past three years,” he says. “The city is a hub of media
crashed into his car. on a beach.” support, and journalists trained in Cardiff and from the area
“I’ve seen the best and worst of life over the last 20 years,” Carolyn Hitt are incredibly supportive.”
she says. “Nothing surprises me any more.” Western Mail While print copies have been halted during the pandemic,
Cohen has lived in Cardiff all her life and cites ‘beautiful students have continued to produce the newspaper online with
walks’ (Bute Park, Roath Park), art and heritage among her “It’s a diverse, some editors paying for software themselves to work remotely.
highlights, especially St Fagans and Cardiff Museum. This is multicultural city that Freelance journalist Jenny Sims is a member of the Welsh
not to mention Cardiff Castle in the city centre, which has has something for Executive Council and moved back to Wales in 2010 from
nearly 2,000 years of history. everyone. It’s a city to London. Working from home, editing B2B publications with
At Cardiff University’s School of Journalism, Media and never be bored in.” occasional travel to international conferences, she found
Culture (JOMEC), students have adapted to working remotely. Jane Cohen Cardiff proved to be the ideal base. Sims lives by the River Ely
Gavin Allen, digital journalism lecturer at JOMEC, says: Wales News in the International Sports Village; she is a keen swimmer and
“Our output has been rearranged, but it has not been Service there are two pools within a 10-minute walk. “If I hop in the
significantly disrupted in terms of volume or quality.” car, within 10-15 minutes, I can be walking on Penarth beach,
Renowned as a world-leading centre for media research, “Cardiff is well-known in a forest or countryside,” she says.
JOMEC is strong on student media. The students’ union has a for its strong student Her involvement with the NUJ Cardiff & South East Wales
weekly newspaper (Gair Rhydd), a magazine (Quench), radio media platform, which branch led to freelance work and she has attended courses
station Xpress and TV station CUTV. JOMEC also has its own can lead to jobs and through NUJ Training Wales.
separate radio and TV station, magazine and newspaper. journalistic experience” While competition is tough and there have been cuts,
“Obviously, the jobs market is in flux at the moment given Tirion Davies opportunities are there. So what’s the key to success?
the pandemic but, generally speaking, Cardiff has a lot to Gair Rhydd For Hitt, it’s maintaining great working relationships with
offer journalists,” says Allen. commissioning editors and meeting their needs. “The other
The downside, if any, is the competition. Allen’s advice is “Big enough to have crucial survival tactic is adapting to changing platforms,” she
be on top of the news as well as the platforms. “If you go for variety – small enough says. “The concept of good content never changes, but how
a job, then know what content that publication puts out on not to be anonymous.” it is communicated does. A great story will always be a great
what platforms – know how you can be useful to them,” he Rob Osborne story – but you have to keep up with the changing methods
says. “Don’t just say ‘I’m eager, give me a chance’. Say ‘I can ITV Wales of telling that story.”
theJournalist | 11Copyrights and
Both buyers and creators of images need to work has been infringed but also has members come to them
who have, unwittingly or otherwise, breached copyright.
understand the rules, says Natasha Hirst As Marsden discovered, not all free image sites or
contributors operate with integrity. Images may appear to
have a licence for free use but users will not know this is not
S
ourcing an image for a client with no budget, valid if the image was uploaded without the consent of the
Jen Marsden, a UK-based writer, editor and copyright owner. However, such stock sites often do not verify
communications consultant, undertook her the ownership of photographs uploaded to their libraries.
usual due diligence, checking the rights and When a photograph is taken, copyright automatically exists
terms of use for a photograph which had a as the intellectual property of the photographer, unless
Creative Commons licence. She then forgot about it until a created ‘in the course of employment’ or subject to a contract
few months down the line when she was shocked to receive assigning these rights elsewhere. Copyright remains for
an invoice for a breach of copyright. 70 years after the year of death of the creator. Nobody is
“I have great respect for photographers and their work,” she allowed to copy an image without permission, regardless of
said “I’m always very careful to check the licence information whether the photographer is professional or an amateur, yet
and I use paid images wherever I can. Some open licence stock this practice is shockingly common.
libraries have amazing, quirky images that you can’t always Twitter is awash with requests to use images and footage
find elsewhere.” found online. Meanwhile, a number of publishers, including
An internet search led Marsden to a Computer Weekly Newsquest, have warned staff about the increasing costs of
article, detailing the claimant’s unethical but legal methods settling copyright claims for photographs used without
for ‘trapping’ people into breaching the strict terms of his consent, often taken from individuals’ social media accounts.
licences. Prolifically uploading thousands of images, he uses The NUJ’s #UseItPayForIt campaign encourages amateur
copyright enforcement agencies and advanced automated photographers to seek payment for newsworthy images and
software to scour the internet for infringements. Then the challenges publishers’ strategies to build free user-generated
payment demands arrive. content instead of paying for photography. Professional
“My client received the emails and passed them onto me. photographers also find themselves fielding regular requests
They were so threatening and full of legal jargon. I couldn’t to use images for free in books, on blogs or in magazines.
believe it.” Marsden said, “Any genuine creative individual As with any profession, clients pay photographers for
wouldn’t go in all guns blazing – they’d find out the situation expertise and skill to create images to a standard they cannot
first and then try to resolve it.” This is, indeed, the produce themselves. Digital photography is not cheap, with
constructive approach that most photographers would take. the cost of kit for a professional easily topping £20,000. That
Marsden’s investigation showed that the image being is before considering computer, software and insurance costs
claimed for was published online after her article was and the lack of statutory rights to sick pay or holiday pay for
published. She said, “I believe he intentionally scrubbed the freelances in an industry that is more than 90% self-employed.
original CC licensed image from the web. I couldn’t prove Stealing or blagging work for nothing or enticing amateurs to
my innocence.” hand over images for a mere credit dangerously undermines
There is an unfortunate dichotomy for the NUJ. The freelance the ability of professional photographers to make a living.
office assists many photographers in making claims when their The value of copyright to photographers should not be
Free is never risk free metadata does
not mean a lack of
belonging to
photographers
should prevent images
from going astray on
IT IS never risk free to not own it, and you or ownership and terms in copyright. registered with it (www. shared drives.
use ‘free’ images from your client would be liable image files, which is A reverse image dacs.org.uk/licensing- Encourage clients to
internet searches, for a copyright breach. known as IPTC search through Google works/in-detail). allocate a budget for
Creative Commons or Do not use an image metadata. You should Images checks if a When commissioning photographs. They
stock libraries. unless you are able to check this to establish photograph appears or buying images, keep pay for words and
Although the licence verify ownership and ownership and rights, elsewhere online, and clear paper trails images should be no
with a picture may have written permission but bear in mind that may provide further including contracts, different. Paying for
appear to give you the to use it from the websites and social clues to its ownership. invoices and licences. A photographs helps
rights needed, the image copyright holder. media platforms may DACS runs a licensing robust content clients reduce their
could have been uploaded Photographers can strip some or all of this system for those management system risk of infringing
by someone who does embed details of information. A lack of wanting to use images and guidelines for staff copyright.
12 | theJournalistcopyright
wrongs
John Walmsley, a freelance documentary photographer for
more than 50 years, explains how he approaches such
requests: “I point out how huge those rights are and quote
appropriately. We normally settle on a five- or 10-year licence.
Same when they say they need all rights. I quote for that and
they then reconsider and find – surprise, surprise – they
actually do not need all rights. Both of those seem a fair balance
to me. Plus we all need to be more comfortable saying ‘no’.”
The Freelance Fees Guide helps to set a ballpark figure to
underestimated and many view their archives as a pension. negotiate fees and provides guidance on addressing
Freelance documentary photographer Julio Etchart found his unauthorised use of work (https://tinyurl.com/5y5fez4m).
images being sold on art sites: “I have no idea how they have When negotiating a commission, photographers normally
managed to access high-resolution copies of my pictures in charge a client for their time and a fee to licence the use of
order to sell them but this is another disturbing example of how images with certain conditions attached. This can include
we are rapidly losing control of the management of our work.” whether the use is exclusive and how long for, how the image
‘It’s in the public domain’, ‘there’s no watermark’ and ‘I paid can be used, where it can be published and how long the
for the photographs to be taken, I can do what I like with licence is in place. A licence can be extended if further use is
them’ are common responses to photographers approaching needed. Both parties should ensure that a written contract is
those who have used their images without permission. As agreed, even if this is just an email exchange.
freelance photographer Arch White explains: “The Copyright breaches often occur when clients unwittingly use
photographer is often expected to jump through hoops to images in a way not specified in the licence, a familiar headache
prove the original provenance of the image and its copyright.” for photographers who do not want to damage relationships
The fair dealing exemption does not apply to photographs with clients but still deserve payment for this additional use.
for the purpose of reporting current events and arguing Photographers themselves can also fall into the trap of
“
‘criticism or review’ as a reason for “using a photo without infringing copyright. Although the posting of tear sheets is
permission is very unlikely to be fair dealing and will thus common, journalists need to be cautious about copying and
constitute an infringement of copyright”, explains Simon sharing their work in this way. Since layout and typography
Chapman, vice-chair of the NUJ photographers’ council. are copyrighted, taking a photo or screengrab of a cutting and
Photographers are often offered contracts with exploitative sharing without permission constitutes a breach of copyright,
clauses that seek to assign all copyright, waive moral rights or
allow clients to use the images as they wish, however,
I quote for all even if the image in it belongs to you and you link back to the
article online. NLA Media (formerly the National Licensing
wherever and forever. Such contracts devalue photography rights and they Association) has become increasingly aggressive in chasing
and permanently reduce the ability of a photographer to these infringements, with freelances and small organisations
continue to earn from their work. The NUJ encourages reconsider and among those receiving significant invoices. NLA Media’s
find – surprise,
photographers to resist signing and seek advice. guidance makes no bones about the importance of revenue
“Companies can just choose to treat freelances better and from secondary licensing and it is unapologetic in its approach.
not impose detrimental clauses,” says Pamela Morton, NUJ
national organiser. “Freelances shouldn’t be labelled difficult
surprise – they Marsden highlighted her concern that aggressive copyright
trolling practices are legal but not only jeopardise individuals
or fear repercussions if they challenge unfair terms. We are actually do not like her who use images in good faith but also damage the
calling for legal loopholes to be closed through the Fair Deal perception of photographers who legitimately and fairly seek
for Freelances campaign.” need all rights compensation for infringements. “I will never use open
”
Demands for use of images in perpetuity are usually licence images again and, for all images I source, I obtain clear
unnecessary and a straightforward conversation about how written permission that specifically names the copyright
images will be used allows an agreement to be reached that owner,” she says, “I want this to be a warning to others to
works for both parties. make sure it doesn’t happen to them too.”
PAUL PATEMAN
theJournalist | 13enough to dispatch reporter Camille Preaker (Amy Adams) to
her home town, seemingly indefinitely, in pursuit of a story. A
newspaper is also the backdrop of Candice Carty-Williams’s
best-selling 2019 novel Queenie. While its portrayals of
frustrating newsroom politics and social dynamics are
uncomfortably accurate, the internet – once again – barely
S
seems to figure. The local paper in After Life, Ricky Gervais’s
E
recent Netflix series, is a smaller affair yet still manages to
R I S
employ several reporters and a staff photographer.
O E
These stories seem like a departure from the traditional
ST I V
role of the fictional journalist: a device to discuss the present-
L
day issues and dilemmas of the media. Billy Wilder’s Ace in
R
the Hole (1951), Jean-Pierre Melville’s Two Men in Manhattan
U
(1959) and Margarethe von Trotta’s The Lost Honour of
O
Katharina Blum (1975) all grapple with the seductive yet
OF
morally bankrupt world of big-city reporting. Many
screenwriters and novelists have found more affectionate
ways to discuss the journalism of their age. As Sarah Lonsdale
argues in her 2016 book The Journalist in British Fiction and
Film, “fictional journalists seldom meditate on the great
mysteries of the human condition” but the works in which
they appear “reveal much about the impact the evolution of
the journalism industry has had on its foot soldiers”.
So why are today’s fictional journalists such nostalgic
creations? Perhaps it’s because the traditional narrative arc in
these stories tends to rest on the notion of the journalist as
intrepid investigator or unscrupulous big shot – always with
the time, resources and autonomy to do their own thing. It is a
more compelling setting than online newsrooms where young
Intrepid sleuths or clickbait chasers?
‘content creators’ turn round seven stories a day without so
much as picking up the phone. Perhaps it is no surprise that
Conrad Landin on fictional journalists Hollywood has turned to the past, with films such as Spotlight
and The Post, when it comes to imagining newsrooms.
Now, however, a number of new novels and TV series
I
t’s like the internet never happened,” Guardian suggest fictional portrayals of journalists are finally catching
TV critic Sam Wollaston observed when Mike up with the age of newsroom cuts and clickbait. Tough,
Bartlett’s BBC drama Press aired in 2018. The individualistic go-getters are not the only journalists out
series was billed as being set “amid the there, finally, other archetypes are getting a look-in on the
never-ending pressure of the 24-hour global page and on screen.
news cycle and an industry in turmoil”. But Wollaston – like One is Thorn Marsh, the protagonist of Marika Cobbold’s
many insiders – felt it was “more like newspaper journalism new novel On Hampstead Heath. A news editor whose paper
20 years ago”. is taken over by a corporate giant that puts clicks before
It’s a familiar feeling. HBO’s Sharp Objects, based on Gillian candour, she is unwillingly transferred to cover lifestyle
Flynn’s novel of the same name, is as atmospheric as it is issues. “Unease crept along the corridors like mould,” Cobbold
spooky – but its St Louis-based newspaper is well resourced writes. “The tyranny of the clicks” leads to “rumours of
Masters of media mystique Alison Steadman as
unscrupulous veterans
leave you in stitches as
well as despair.
quickly learns she will
always be held to a
Eric Linklater’s Poet’s for a novelist’s theme Cold War intrigue. If at a London red-top. The higher standard than her
Pub (1929) features among the other dust”. you’ve worked on a mundanity of the Denise Mina’s Paddy male colleagues.
Nelly Bly, a young launch of a paper with newsroom dialogue will Meehan trilogy, adapted
reporter “almost alone” Robert Harling wrote more than meets the for the BBC as The Field In Dan Gilroy’s 2014
among her friends in four thrillers about eye, The Hollow Sunday of Blood, follows a film Nightcrawler, Jake
never having been journalists in the 1950s (1967) may ring true. budding female reporter Gyllenhaal plays a video
married or never having and 1960s, each with an in 1980s Glasgow stringer who becomes
written a book. She goes unnamed main character Les Blair’s 1990 TV against a backdrop of increasingly unethical to
undercover as a maid at juggling daily tasks with play News Hounds stars class conflict. Brave and encourage such
the titular inn to “look press baron politics and Adrian Edmondson and principled, Paddy behaviour.
14 | theJournalistYou can also read
