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It’s time for change in our newsrooms: here's how — www.thebureauinvestigates.com

The fallout from the Sussexes' highlighting the structural and depressingly profitable racism in the UK media continues: The Bureau of Investigative Journalism has pulled out of the Society of Editors' Press Awards, citing the incompatibility with the Bureau's mission to improve journalism provision in the UK. Its host Charlene White has also stepped down, with a truly mic-drop worthy statement 🎤.

At the same time the whole saga shows how deeply riven the industry is, between the incumbents who profess there's no endemic racism, and those who correctly say there is. The Society of Editors, which purports to represent UK journalists' key decision makers, is currently embroiled in a civil war between the two factions, with a subsequent statement doing little to actually calm things down. The Guardian reports:

"The board split came after 168 journalists, writers and broadcasters of colour from across the British media wrote an open letter describing the SoE’s initial statement as 'laughable' proof of 'an institution and an industry in denial'." One thing's for sure - there are swathes of the UK media that are bigoted, and this kind of denial serves nobody.

Is local journalism dying? Look closer — www.americanpressinstitute.org

I love a good case study in how a local newspaper is adapting. While there isn't really parity in what counts as 'local' between the US and Europe this article from the API examines the case of The Oaklandside, and how it began a listening project to discover what its readers really want.

Penske Media launches first-party data studio — www.axios.com

A robust first-party data strategy is looking ever more vital for publishers. Long after the phrase 'table stakes' were used to describe access to detailed audience data, Penske Media is investing heavily in ensuring that nobody knows more about its audience than it does.

BuzzFeed lays off 47 HuffPost workers less than a month after acquisition — www.theguardian.com

Terrible news out of HuffPost following its acquisition by BuzzFeed. Through a ham-fisted and thoughtless process, 47 journalists have been laid off - and its likely more will follow if the figures BuzzFeed have provided around profitability are accurate. There's a sense that Jonah Peretti has abandoned any obligation to news provision.

Throwback Thursday

Stylist Group CEO Ella Dolphin on transforming the free print magazine to digital subscriptions — voices.media

A real time capsule this week: Ella Dolphin told us about the acceleration of the title’s plans to adopt a reader revenue model as the free print magazine distribution was put on hold, how that has affected the team’s workflow, and what the focus will look like for the group post-pandemic.

My Media Roundup

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