An interesting stat from comedy series Hold the Front Page where Josh Widdicombe and Nish Kumar explore grassroots journalism.
This week saw them at Bradford newspaper Telegraph & Argus and was comedy gold.
They got Chris Packham into a wheelie bin to highlight a great big litter pick undertaken by volunteers, highlighting really great work going on in a district that doesn’t always get a good press.
A former journalist in Bradford, I know the brilliant work that goes on within communities there.
As T&A editor Nigel Burton, a very patient man, explained to the comedians desperately hunting stories down, it is about ‘ordinary people doing extraordinary things’.
We don’t value local journalism as much as we should. Many national stories come from grassroots journalism and you really hone your craft as a journalist by starting on local papers. Building contacts, finding stories, justifying why your story deserves a place in the paper. The buzz of the front page.
Effective communication is vital, yet how it is delivered is just as crucial.
Placing stories in local papers and local media, whether that is broadcast or radio, you know they will be believed and trusted and you are supporting local journalism.
A dying craft if we are not careful.
