Final Report News Media Economic Impact Study

UK News Media: an engine of original news
content and democracy

A study on the economic contribution of the UK news media industry
December 2016
UK News Media: an engine of original news content and democracy
Important Notice
This Final Report (the “Final Report”) has been prepared by Deloitte LLP (“Deloitte”) for the News
Media Association (NMA) in accordance with the contract with them dated 5 August 2016 (“the
Contract”) and on the basis of the scope and limitations set out below.
The Final Report has been prepared solely for the purpose of quantifying the economic contribution
of the national and local/regional UK news media sector, as set out in the Contract. It should not
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Contents
Foreword by the News Media Association 4

Executive Summary 5
1 Introduction 7
2 A major UK employer and spender 10
3 An engine of original UK news content 14
4 A feeder of knowledge and literacy 18
5 The glue for communities and social
cohesion 21
6 A channel for businesses to connect with
customers 25
7 Appendix: Methodology 27
3
Foreword by the News

Media Association
The UK news media industry generates a unique securing a wage increase for 232 of the lowest-
combination of economic, social and cultural paid catering staff.
benefits which are hugely important for our
society. In an era of fake news and social media hype,
genuine and reliable newspaper journalism is
As this study finds, the sector makes a substantial sought out by the public. More people are reading
contribution to the UK economy – £5.3 billion in newspapers in print and digital than ever before -
gross value added in 2015 – and, crucially, more 91 per cent of the adult population each month.
money is spent with UK suppliers than the average
across the economy as a whole. This value is Newspapers are also an important channel for
distributed throughout the supply chain with the businesses to connect with customers. Ninety per
industry supporting an estimated 87,500 FTE jobs cent of the main shoppers in the household read
in the UK. newspapers every month. Recent research shows
that newspaper advertising boosts ROI by three
But UK local, regional and national newsbrands times and combining print and digital advertising
play another, arguably even more important, role improves how a consumer interacts with and
in civic life. Newsbrands act as the public’s values a brand.
watchdog. By scrutinising and holding the
powerful to account on behalf of their readers, It is UK newspapers which invest in original
newspapers underpin the democratic process. journalism – far more than any other media. But,
in spite of this, digital platforms and aggregators
We have seen countless examples of agenda- who invest nothing in news content are reaping
setting newspaper journalism in recent years. The the commercial rewards from the newspaper
Guardian’s Panama Papers revelations and The sector’s investment.
Sunday Times’ investigation into FIFA are just two
cases of painstakingly researched stories which We must bear this in mind as we reflect on the
dominated the global news agenda when they news media’s contribution to society and look at
broke. the steps we can take to ensure newspapers can
continue to invest in original agenda-setting news
Similarly, The Jersey Evening Post’s investigation and information.
into online underage grooming led to arrests,
raised awareness of the issue and received praise We welcome the publication of this report because
from the NSPCC. Johnston Press has just launched it shines a timely spotlight on the immense value
an investigations unit to focus upon original that Britain’s free press adds to our society. We
agenda-setting investigations such as the Drive for must do everything we can to support the vital
Justice campaign. The Camden New Journal’s work of newspapers in all their forms and ensure
campaign for school dinner ladies to receive the they have a long and healthy future.
London Living Wage resulted in Camden Council
Ashley Highfield David Dinsmore

Chairman Vice Chairman
News Media Association News Media Association
4
Executive Summary
News content informs, persuades and entertains readers. It presents a
diversity of opinions, helps make sense of facts and information and tells
stories that engage its audience.
In 2015, the UK news media industry1 contributed an estimated £5.3 billion

in Gross Value Added (GVA) and supported 87,500 FTE jobs in the UK.
Ninety percent of news media organisations’ total spend with suppliers is
inside the UK, compared with 77% across the economy.
UK newsbrands conduct investigative journalism that is a primary source of

breaking news. Their investigations are behind many of the big stories of
the past few decades. Recent examples include trawling millions of files
from the database of the world’s fourth largest offshore law firm, dubbed
the ‘Panama Papers’, to uncover offshore holdings of politicians and
businessmen and investigating claims of corruption in international football
governance, among many others.
Such stories hold politicians and public institutions accountable, increase

transparency and strengthen UK democracy. UK newsbrands also inform
and educate citizens, and provide an important platform for communities to
rally around causes. They have run campaigns that range from teaching
women how to detect the signs of breast cancer to pushing local authorities
to take action on health issues facing the older population in a community.
UK newsbrands are an engine of original news content that is consumed

across different media. They invest in quality content and journalism which
is accessed across print and digital platforms in the communications
ecosystem, including through broadcasters, technology platforms and social
media outlets. Over the course of 2015, for example, UK newsbrands drove
nearly a billion social media interactions.2
Through their digital presence UK newsbrands reach larger audiences than

ever before, meeting the ever present appetite of the public for news
content. Ninety-one percent of Great Britain (GB) adults consume content
produced by a UK newsbrand every month.3 Seventy-five percent of GB
adults access newsbrands digitally every month, with digital providing a
38% increase to newsbrands’ print readership on average.4
Despite very large audiences, the industry has experienced falling revenues
over the past decade. This is partly driven by the shift of advertising spend
to online media, the competition for that revenue, declining print revenues,
and the early stage of development of print subscription models online. All
of these factors have contributed to the current lower monetisation of
newsbrands’ digital audiences as compared to their print audiences. The
industry’s average annual revenue per print media user is estimated at c.
£124 currently, while that per digital media user is estimated at c. £15.5
Newsbrands are experimenting with new digital business and monetisation

models including paywalls, permanent subscriber members, sales of
advertising space through programmatic advertising and news distribution
arrangements with online technology platforms. In 2015 alone, the sector
5
invested more than £97 million in digital services, underpinning the sector’s
future-proofing and contribution as an engine of original news content.
Although digital revenues of news media organisations are growing, they
are failing to offset the fall in print revenue.6
The multi-platform reach and trusted content of UK newsbrands makes

them an important channel for businesses to connect with their customers.
Readers often spend focused time on a newsbrand. When reading a national
newspaper, 60% of the time this is the only media the reader is engaged
with.7 The news media industry is also an important channel for Small and
Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to advertise, who typically face higher barriers
to advertising. Seventy-eight percent of total advertising in local and
regional news media is by SMEs.8 Sixty-five percent of people consuming
local newsbrands said local adverts helped them make decisions.9
The news media industry supports value in many different businesses

across the economy, such as the network of retailers and distributors that
get print copies to readers across the country. For every £1 a consumer
pays in cover price for example, on average 28p goes to retailers and
wholesalers. This is equivalent to an estimated £640 million in revenues for
UK retailers and wholesalers, whose economic effects are included in the
industry total GVA impact, and that are shared across many retail points:
on average, a national news media organisation sells papers at more than
50,700 retail outlets nationwide while for regional organisations, the
average number of retail outlets papers are sold in is more than 5,900.
UK newsbrands are influential household names, operating in an evolving

commercial environment. The sector’s audience comprises the large
majority of the GB adult population, demonstrating the high appetite for
news content. Digital audiences are now larger than print audiences, and
the sector is experimenting with different digital monetisation models which
have underpinned the sector’s digital revenue growth in the last few years.
As readers continue to move online, the sector’s ongoing future contribution
as an engine of UK news production rests on its ability to continue to
successfully monetise its content digitally and in print to fund news
gathering.
6
1 Introduction
The UK news media industry10 is an engine of original news content. The
sector’s content is consumed across all channels, whether online media and
blogs, radio programmes, or broadcast news reviews.
The sector plays a key role in informing citizens about issues of public
interest, holding public officials and organisations to scrutiny, increasing
transparency in government and improving community cohesion. This
contribution is underpinned by the sector’s investment in journalism and
content creation.
The UK news media industry has far-reaching appeal and provides a

plurality of views. The UK has the most national newspaper titles per capita
and is second only to the US in the provision of local news titles.11 Each
news source plays a key role in maintaining diversity and balance in news
coverage. National newsbrands present unique editorial standpoints,
national TV and radio provide more balanced coverage with views across
the political spectrum while local newsbrands generally cover a breadth of
opinions from the local market.12
While UK newsbrands have historically had a strong print circulation, users

increasingly access newsbrands’ content through the brands’ websites in
addition to their print version, and through third party services including
social media, news aggregators, or simply by searching the web.
The digital audiences of news media organisations are now larger than the
print audiences, demonstrating the high appetite for news. Thirty-five
million Great Britain (GB) adults read a newspaper every month, while 39
million access newsbrands via digital platforms.13 The internet is now the
second most popular medium to access news after TV, ahead of newspapers
and radio.14
Of the adults that use the internet or apps for news, more say they use
social media sites (43%), search engines (37%) and news aggregators
(17%) combined, compared to those that say they use the website or apps
of newspapers (28%). Around half say they use the website or apps of TV
and radio companies.15
Over the course of 2015, it is estimated that UK newsbrands’ content drove

nearly a billion (967 million) social media interactions.16 Conversely,
approximately three-quarters of the traffic to newsbrand websites comes
from third party referrals, such as referrals from search, social media and
news aggregators. On average, a quarter of total traffic comes to the
website directly.17
Consumers say they use news aggregators, such as Apple News and Google
News, for a variety of reasons. These include to follow feeds from their
favourite sources (58%), to discover new publications or journalists (53%),
to bring together different views on news events (50%), to get up to the
minute breaking news stories (42%) and to view lots of stories neatly and
easily (33%).18
7
Figure 1 Newsbrand consumption across print and digital
Source: Deloitte analysis; NMA member data.
Despite reaching large audiences through the combination of digital and

print, news media organisations have experienced falling revenues over the
past decade. Total news media industry’s revenue in 2015 is approximately
half its 2003/04 level.19 This is due in part to the shift of revenue to online
media, the decrease in print circulation and the emergence of online
competitors.
Despite the strong growth in total online advertising, the competition for
that revenue has made it difficult for news publishers to match the print
advertising revenues they used to have. Newsbrands are experimenting
with new digital monetisation models including paywalls, permanent
subscriber members, sales of advertising space through programmatic
advertising and news distribution arrangements with online technology
platforms.
Digital revenues are increasing (the digital revenues of national newspapers

for example increased by c. 190% between 2010 and 2014)20 although the
increase is not yet large enough to offset the fall in print revenue. In 2015,
the sector invested more than £97 million in digital services to continue to
equip the sector for the future.
All of this means that the monetisation of readers online is currently weaker
than the monetisation of print audiences. The vast majority of news media
organisations’ revenue (81%) continues to come from print readership, with
12% coming from digital.21 The sector’s average annual revenue per digital
reader is estimated to be approximately £15 currently, compared to c. £124
per print reader.22 With the ongoing shift to digital readership among all
audiences and the greater use of digital media by younger audiences, the
sector’s ongoing role as an engine of original news content relies on it being
able to monetise digital audiences effectively so it can continue investing in
quality journalism.
8
Against this background, the News Media Association (NMA) has

commissioned Deloitte to undertake an economic impact assessment of the
UK news media industry.
This report discusses the contribution of the sector to UK GVA and

employment, along with its wider contributions to the economy, to
democracy and to society through its investments in original content and its
role in increasing community cohesion, improving knowledge and literacy
and helping businesses connect with their consumers.
The analysis draws upon financial and non-financial data submitted by the
majority of NMA members, interviews conducted with senior executives of
some of the largest news media organisations in the UK (see appendix 7.3
for a list) and third party sources including the Advertising Association (AA),
Newsworks, the National Readership Survey (NRS), the NMA and the Audit
Bureau of Circulation, among others. Case study examples have been
provided by NMA members.
9
2 A major UK
employer and
spender
In 2015 the news media industry earned an estimated £4.8 billion in
revenues from circulation and advertising.23,24 An additional £0.3 billion was
generated by news media organisations in other activities such as news
syndication and contract printing.
These revenues support expenditure and employment across the UK

economy, and contribute to UK GVA. In 2015 the news media industry,
including its distribution network, contributed an estimated £5.3 billion of
GVA to the UK economy and supported an estimated 87,500 FTE jobs in the
UK.25 Of the industry’s total impact, £4.6 billion GVA and 72,600 FTE jobs
relate to news media organisations’ impacts, while £0.7 billion and 14,800
FTE jobs relate to newspaper retailers and wholesalers impacts.
GVA is defined as total revenue less intermediate consumption, that is, the
cost of goods and services used up in the process of production. GVA
represents the sum of the wages, taxes and profits a sector supports,
directly, indirectly through the sector’s purchases of inputs, and through the
ripple effects of the direct and indirect GVA across the rest of the economy.
The news media industry’s total GVA impact breaks into direct, supply chain
and wider ripple effects across the economy as illustrated below and
explained in parts 2.3 and 2.4 of this section.
Figure 2 Economic and employment impact of the news media industry
10
2.1 News media organisations’ expenditure contributes to the

wider UK economy
In 2015, news media organisations’ revenues26 translated into an estimated

£4.3 billion of expenditure. This was spread across wages, suppliers and
taxes. Half of this went to suppliers and more than one-third to employees,
most of them in the UK.
Figure 3 News media organisations expenditure

Note: This analysis is based on NMA member survey data collected for this
study, which makes up 81% of estimated total news media organisations’
revenues, excluding the Financial Times. See endnote for a description of the
different kinds of expenditure and the assumptions made in the analysis.27
Of news media organisation supply chain spend, only 10% is outside the UK
compared with 23% across the economy.28
The average news media industry organisation supports value across many
parties and has almost 2,600 suppliers, ranging from newspaper
wholesalers and ink producers to web developers and technology
maintenance.
2.2 Distribution of newspapers supports value across a

network of UK retailers and wholesalers
Key to the ability for the news media industry to get newspapers to people
across the UK is its intricate ecosystem of news content distribution. Across
the UK, retailers and wholesalers of newspapers generated an estimated
£640 million in revenue in 2015.29
The sale of a newspaper will, for example, contribute to the revenue and
wages of that shop, as well as the revenues and wages of the wholesalers
that connect the shop to the news media organisation.
On average, a national news media industry organisation sells papers in

50,740 retail outlets nationwide, while on average, a regional organisation
sells papers in 5,970 retail outlets across the country. With the vast
majority of the UK covered by a local newspaper, shops across the country
are involved in the news media distribution chain.
By distributing newspapers, wholesalers and retailers receive more than a

quarter of a newspaper cover price. Together, retailers and wholesalers
receive 28p on average from a newspaper that costs £1 for a consumer to
buy.
11
Figure 4 Distribution of the cover price
Source: Deloitte analysis; NMA member data
2.3 The news media industry contributes to UK GVA

The news media industry’s overall GVA impact of £5.3 billion extends across
a wide spectrum of the national economy. For every £1 million of GVA
directly generated by the industry, through both news media organisations
and those who sell the newspapers, an additional £1.4 million is generated
on average through the purchase of inputs and the expenditure of wages on
living expenses and leisure by employees and the employees of suppliers.
The news media industry’s total GVA impact is made up of:
 £2.2 billion of direct GVA contribution through wages paid to UK

employees, taxes paid to the UK exchequer and profits earned. Activity
by news media organisations alone contributed enough tax in 2015 to
finance approximately 4,700 teachers.30
 £1.9 billion of indirect GVA contribution as a result of purchases from UK

suppliers. By employing a UK based marketing agency for example, a
news media organisation encourages further economic activity as the
marketing agency purchases inputs and pays wages to its employees.
Similarly, a newspaper retailer supports UK economic activity by renting
or leasing the premises from where it sells.
 £1.2 billion of induced GVA contribution through the ripple effects of the
direct and indirect impacts. These impacts arise as employees in the
news media industry and its suppliers (and their suppliers and so on)
spend wages on items such as food, housing and leisure activities.
2.4 The news media industry supports UK employment
Extensive expenditure in the UK and direct UK employment means that the

news media industry and its distribution network support jobs in industries
spanning from the creative economy to manufacturing. In total, the news
media industry supports an estimated 87,500 UK jobs, of which 72,600 jobs
are supported through media organisations’ impacts and 14,800 through
newspaper retailers and wholesalers impacts.
 The news media industry and its distribution network employs an

estimated 37,700 full time equivalent (FTE) employees in the UK across
a diverse range of roles. An estimated 28,600 of these are employed by
news media organisations in the UK. A further estimated 9,100 are
employed by wholesale and retail newspaper distributors as a result of
newspaper sale activities. This does not necessarily reflect the total
12
number of people involved in the sector as some employees work part-

time, and the figure does not include freelance journalists.
 Through the news media industry supply chain, a further 30,700 FTE
jobs are supported. For example, this will include the suppliers of ink
and newsprint that are used in producing a newspaper.
 An additional 19,100 FTE roles are supported throughout the UK

economy through the wages spent by the employees of the news media
industry and its wider supply chain. The wages these employees receive
send a ripple effect through the UK as they are used to purchase goods
and services from other industries. For example, an employee that
spends money in a restaurant supports the wages used to pay the
restaurant’s chefs and waiting staff.
News media organisations’ total GVA and employment contribution is based

on employment, expenditure, tax and profit information provided by NMA
members. Newspaper retailer and wholesaler total GVA and employment
contribution is estimated from the sector’s revenue from newspaper
distribution, and ONS data on, first, the retail and wholesale trade sectors’
direct GVA in output and, second, these sectors’ import propensity. Details
of the methodology are provided in the appendix.
These figures do not include jobs supported through the success of an

advert placed in a newspaper or in a digital space.
2.5 Newsbrands’ content production is a component part of the

creative industries
The UK’s creative industries share of total GVA has been growing year-on-
year since 2009, now comprising 5.2% of UK GVA. Their activity contributed
£84 billion to UK GVA in 2014,31 though the creative industries value
spreads wider as they are able to drive business for other sectors. The
creative industries are identified by the UK government’s Growth Review as
one of eight sectors with clear growth opportunities.32
As part of the creative industries, the publishing sector contributes £10.2

billion in direct GVA (excluding supply chain and ripple effects across the
economy) and newspaper publishing is c. 25% of that.33 As a comparator,
direct GVA generated by news media organisations was c. 75% of the size
of direct GVA generated by the product, graphic and fashion design industry
and c. 45% of the direct GVA generated by the music, performing and
visual arts industry in 2014.34,35
Between 2014 and 2015, the number of jobs in the creative industries grew
3.2% to almost 1.9 million, of which publishing makes up 11% (or 200,000
jobs).36 This growth compares with a 2% growth in jobs in the wider UK
economy.
Published UK digital content reaches around the world, and the widespread
international use of English makes publishing in the UK an important
globally connected industry. As well as having an economic role, creative
industries add cultural value to a society and encourage innovation and
experimentation.37
13
3 An engine of
original UK news
content
3.1 The news media industry makes significant investment in
producing original news content
The UK news media industry invests significant resources in producing

original news content. By one measure, newsbrands were responsible for
58% of the total spend on original news content in the UK. 38
Of all the people that the news media industry employs in the UK, an
estimated 11,200 FTEs are directly involved in journalism and content
creation, or 39% of FTEs directly employed by news media organisations.39
In addition, of NMA members surveyed, the average organisation draws on
more than 389 freelancers40 and over 1,600 other news contributors.41
These journalists and freelancers are spread across different corners of the
country, acting as watchdogs for the community.
The UK news media industry invests in training journalists to support the

quality of content. For those news media organisations surveyed, c. £5.8
million was spent on employee and apprenticeship training in 2015.42
Discovering child abuse in Rotherham, South Yorkshire

The Times’ four-year investigation into child abuse in Rotherham resulted
in an independent inquiry that found at least 1,400 girls were sexually
exploited over 16 years.
A series of stories about the failure of agencies in Rotherham to
acknowledge and tackle years of widespread abuse led the council to
commission an independent inquiry. The inquiry found that the girls had
been subjected to "appalling levels of crime and abuse", with the council
and police blamed for failing in their duty to protect children in the town.
The story led to the resignation of senior public services figures in the
area and triggered two major criminal inquiries into allegations of sexual
exploitation in Rotherham, featuring a total of 283 victims and 18
suspects. The report also prompted the formation of a Government task
force on child sexual exploitation, new regulations in children's homes,
improved training for police, new guidelines for judges and prosecutors
plus a sharp rise in criminal investigations into child sexual exploitation
across England.
In addition to journalists, the sector draws upon a varied skill mix, such as
people in technology and data driven fields to produce content for its multi-
platform offering, people in printing supporting the UK’s manufacturing base
and people in distribution and marketing. Within news media organisations,
there are an estimated 2,650 FTEs in manufacturing, 1,250 in technology,
14
2,530 in distribution and 7,570 in marketing employed in the sector,

showing the diversity of the sector’s workforce.43
3.2 The news media industry produces authoritative content

that informs and persuades, strengthening transparency
and democracy
Newsbrands break important news stories to the public. They have played a
key role in discovering and communicating some of the biggest news stories
of the past few years, ranging from the Panama Papers leak to exposing
malpractice in FIFA. They conduct investigative journalism and produce
stories that may not otherwise be discovered. This content is shared,
reproduced and further built on by other players in the communications
ecosystem.
Newsbrands inform and persuade readers. They provide the public with
information on issues spanning economics, politics, sport, culture,
community and more, synthesising facts into analysis. They bring together
information into stories that readers can engage with.
They bring misconduct by institutions and public figures to the attention of

citizens, helping hold public individuals and institutions to account. The
‘cash for access’ story, for example, led to widespread discussion about the
rules surrounding private work that MPs could carry out, and prompted a
public debate about the effectiveness of the system that regulates MPs after
the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner and Standards Committee of
MPs exonerated the former foreign secretaries involved.
Investigating offshore holdings of politicians and businessmen

The Panama Papers were an unprecedented leak of 11.5 million files from
the database of the world’s fourth biggest offshore law firm, Mossack
Fonseca.
The Guardian brought together its specialist investigations team to pore
over the files. The paper’s foremost Russia expert investigated the firm’s
Russian and Ukrainian customers. A tax and fraud specialist investigated
the offshore holdings of Iceland’s prime minister. Another journalist
tracked down the files relating to members of parliament, peers and
political donors.
Twelve national leaders were among 143 politicians, their families and
close associates from around the world found to have been using offshore
tax havens. In the wake of the revelations, then Prime Minister David
Cameron announced the establishment of a taskforce, led by HM Revenue
and Customs and the National Crime Agency, to examine the legality of
the financial affairs of companies mentioned in the Panama Papers.
Newsbrands are a trusted source of information. In a world with abundance

of information and data, they are a clear voice on important issues for their
readers. They follow standards to provide authoritative and reliable content
that is professionally curated. The Independent Press Standards
Organisation (IPSO) is the independent regulator for the newspaper and
magazine industry in the UK. It ensures members follow the Editors’
Code,44 can fine publishers for failing to comply with standards and provides
15
advice and training to journalists. This helps to maintain quality standards

across the UK news media industry.
Unveiling unethical fundraising practices by some national

charities
Fundraising tactics of some of Britain’s biggest charities were investigated
by the Daily Mail’s Investigations Unit. Acting on a tip off by a whistle-
blower, a Mail reporter spent three weeks working undercover in a call
centre used by some of the country’s largest charities.
The investigation found that some charities were contacting people on
the government’s ‘no-call’ list, and were prepared to take money over the
phone from those with Dementia, Alzheimer’s or memory problems.
Following the Mail’s story, the charities’ regulator FRSB launched an
inquiry, and requested the Mail’s evidence. The then Prime Minister David
Cameron announced new laws and a major review of the fundraising
sector, the Etherington review. The Mail’s campaign resulted in an
overhaul of the sector’s fundraising practices.
Newsbrands develop arguments for different positions and take sides. The
UK referendum on membership of the EU is one recent example of this.45
Following the UK’s historic Brexit decision, the public turned to newsbrands
for analysis of the implications of the decision. National newspapers saw an
average increase in circulation of 7% on expected sales of Saturday editions
following the vote.46
Exposing alleged abuse of power by politicians

The Telegraph exposed Jack Straw and Sir Malcolm Rifkind, former
foreign secretaries, for their role in a ‘cash for access’ scandal.
It was alleged that both men offered to use their positions as politicians
on behalf of a fictitious Chinese company in return for payments of at
least £5,000 per day. Mr Straw boasted that he operated “under the
radar” to use his influence.
An inquiry by Ofcom, the broadcasting regulator, found that Mr Straw
and Sir Malcolm Rifkind did seek to “exploit their experience and
connections” for personal gain. However, both men were exonerated by
the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner and Standards Committee of
MPs.
As a result of the disclosures, Sir Malcolm resigned from his position as
chairman of Parliament's Intelligence and Security committee and stood
down at the 2015 election.
By informing citizens about important issues and improving transparency

and accountability in government, newsbrands serve the critical function of
strengthening UK democracy.
16
Campaigning for justice following Hillsborough Stadium disaster

For 27 years the Liverpool Echo tirelessly campaigned for justice for the
96 Liverpool fans who travelled to Sheffield in April 1989 to watch a
football match but never returned. The Echo quashed the original inquest
verdicts and successfully campaigned for the launch of new inquests.
On 26 April 2016 the jury determined that the 96 Liverpool fans were
unlawfully killed and a catalogue of failings by police and the ambulance
services had contributed to their deaths.
The Echo was the only media organisation to attend every day of the
hearings, with reporter Eleanor Barlow covering all 267 days of the two
yearlong inquests.
Discovering corruption in sport

The Sunday Times’ investigation into FIFA began in 2010. The
investigation had a breakthrough in 2014 when a senior FIFA figure
leaked a cache of hundreds of millions of documents.
The ‘FIFA files’ yielded a series of stories claiming that Mohamed bin
Hammam, Qatar’s top football official, had sought to bring the 2022
World Cup to Qatar by making cash payments to football officials and
making pacts with other voters. The files also revealed how much FIFA’s
ruling executive committee was paid in salaries and perks.
The investigation has had profound consequences within FIFA with a six-
year ban handed to president Sepp Blatter, who is appealing at the Court
of Arbitration for Sport, and the US government indicting several current
and former FIFA officials and sports marketing companies.
The Sunday Times’ investigation caused then Chancellor George Osborne
to comment: “If people ever question why you need a free press I think
The Sunday Times has proved beyond doubt its value.”
17
4 A feeder of
knowledge and
literacy
4.1 Newsbrands are a national source of news and information
Newsbrands are a source of news and information for the UK population.

Beyond readership across the population, 60% of all students read a
newspaper each month.47
By browsing a newsbrand website, app or paper, readers can come across

viewpoints they may not have considered and facts they may not have been
looking for.
Newsbrands inform the nation by:
 Raising public awareness on current affairs of national interest.

Newsbrands inform the country on what is happening across the rest of
the UK and around the world.
 Igniting conversations between friends, families and strangers alike,

encouraging debate on issues of national importance. On Twitter alone
for the year starting March 2014, newsbrand stories were shared 5.6
million times, highlighting the importance placed on authoritative and
trusted newsbrands. Articles on Buzzfeed and the Huffington Post
combined were shared 1.2 million times over the same period.48
 Educating the population on issues ranging from public health to climate

change. Effective communication of health news increases understanding
of disease and conditions, encouraging lifestyle choices that can promote
better public health outcomes.49
Informing women about breast cancer signs

The Sun’s Page 3 teamed up with Breast Cancer Charity, CoppaFeel! in
2014 for the Check ‘Em Tuesday campaign to help boost early detection of
the disease - the UK’s most common cancer - by encouraging women to get
to know their breasts. A week after launch CoppaFeel! saw a 2,000%
increase in hits to the CoppaFeel! website and gained more than 3,000
Twitter followers.
The campaign ran every Tuesday for six months. Independent research
commissioned by The Sun and CoppaFeel! found UK women were four times
more likely to check their breasts after seeing the campaign. The campaign
also gave women the confidence to go to the doctor and the research found
that male Sun readers were more likely to speak to their partners if they
thought there was something unusual.
18
4.2 The news media industry is a stimulant to improving

literacy which has positive impacts on the economy and
health
The average time spent reading newspapers in print or digital format is 31

minutes per day, compared to 14 minutes spent reading other online
news.50 Frequent reading for pleasure has been shown to improve
vocabulary and the level of reading and writing proficiency across both
adults and children. A 2014 study found that vocabulary progress for adults
is improved by 1% by frequent reading of broadsheet newspapers,51 whilst
a report published by Save the Children highlights that just ten minutes a
day of parents reading with their children can make a positive difference to
a child’s reading achievements.52
Based on Save the Children’s analysis, The Sun newspaper collaborated

with the charity for their ‘Get Kids Reading’ campaign. The campaign’s key
message was to encourage children to read for ten minutes a day, whether
it be a book, website, or newspaper.
A number of regional and local newsbrands have led similar campaigns,

including London’s Evening Standard, the Stoke Sentinel and the Oxford
Mail. The Evening Standard’s campaign won praise from both Ofsted and
the EU, with the latter citing the importance of non-governmental
organisations in stimulating community spirit and encouraging volunteering
in schools and libraries.53 Over the Oxford Mail’s two year campaign,
participating schools saw the proportion of pupils reaching the government
expected reading standard at Key Stage 1 in participating schools increase
from 75% to 83%.54
Academic literature shows that improved literacy can lead to enhanced

productivity, employment and health outcomes:
 Wages: Those with ‘functional’ literacy skills are shown to be paid, on

average, 16% more than those with lower literacy skills.55 On today’s
National Living Wage, that equates to an extra £1.15 per hour for a
worker over the age of 25.56 A UK survey showed that 73% of
businesses think primary schools should focus more on literacy and
numeracy.57
 Labour market participation: OECD analysis shows that low literacy skills
increase the probability of being neither in employment nor education
and training.58
 GDP per capita: It has been shown for a sample of OECD countries that
literacy has a positive impact on levels of GDP per capita and labour
productivity.59
 Health and crime: People with poor literacy are shown to be less likely to
understand information about healthy living and how to deal with
existing medical conditions. For example, half of patients with diabetes
and low literacy skills can identify the symptoms of diabetes, compared
to 92% of those with adequate literacy skills.60 Crime is also impacted:
of those offenders in custody, almost half (48%) have a reading age at
or below that of an 11 year old.61
19
As a frequently read medium, news media is a platform to present articles

and campaigns on the early detection of diseases or on lifestyle choices for
disease prevention.
Raising awareness of mental health issues

The Sunday Mirror's Time To Change campaign, urging government to
effectively support people with mental health issues, is now in its fourth year.
The campaign started with an interview with Frank Bruno, a former
professional boxer, around his bipolar disorder. It triggered thousands of
responses from readers.
The paper started a campaign to raise awareness and urge government
action around mental health issues. It set out key aims - to put pressure on
the Government to reverse cuts to services, to improve care offered to young
people and to put mental health on an even footing with the way physical ill
health is treated. Driven by the campaign, the Government announced the
provision of self-help books in schools and libraries to raise awareness of
mental health conditions.
A number of the news media organisations surveyed cite schemes focused

on generating interest among young people in journalism as part of their
corporate social responsibility programmes. One example is the News
Academy, an initiative of News UK, which aims to prepare journalists
through training, masterclasses, career advice and other support. Beyond
this, as a skilled profession 16,400 journalism examinations were taken
over the academic year 2014 to 2015 via the National Council for the
Training of Journalists.62
Further demonstrating the importance and value of news media content, in

2015 the NLA Media Access supplied nearly 10,000 corporate licences to
businesses including higher education establishments for a value of £37
million. 63 These licences provide access to news media articles, which are
often used for information, media monitoring and reputation management.
20
5 The glue for

communities and
social cohesion
5.1 The local and regional news media industry binds
communities together
The UK has a vibrant regional and local media sector, with more than 1,000
print and 1,700 digital titles.64 Across print, online and digital apps, local
newsbrands reach 40 million people a week.65
Regional and local media reaches 95.5% of GB postcodes.66 Printed local

and regional newspapers are the second most popular medium through
which local news is consumed.67
Regional newsbrands foster community identity and cohesion by informing

the local community and acting as a public watchdog for citizens.
Investigative reports and meaningful campaigns help local and regional
newsbrands hold politicians to account and generate pressure for issues
that are relevant for a community. Local and regional newsbrands:
 Celebrate the community. As flagbearers for regions, local newspapers

frequently broadcast what is great about a city, town or street. The
Barnsley Chronicle, for instance, holds an annual Proud of Barnsley
awards night to celebrate local citizens. A campaign by the Jersey
Evening Post encouraged readers to rally behind one of the island’s
oldest industries – farming – after a UK producer pulled the plug on its
local business.
 Raise awareness of important community issues. Investigative

journalism can raise awareness to parts of a community that are lesser
known. For example, London’s Evening Standard ran a campaign that
covered London’s criminal youth gangs, reporting how half of the
teenagers in recent research had personally witnessed a stabbing or
shooting. Another Evening Standard campaign presented how the Angel
Town estate in Brixton is beset with gang crime, and went further to
identify community based projects that could help to address the issue.
21
Exposing employee remuneration below London Living Wage

After learning of the low wages paid to catering staff, the Camden New
Journal took up the campaign for school dinner ladies in 51 schools across
the borough to receive the London Living Wage.
Despite the sympathetic reactions, Camden Council councillors told the
dinner ladies initially that they would be stuck on the lower rate until the
catering contract with Caterlink ran out.
The paper profiled some of the dinner ladies and the difficulties they faced,
with one woman having no more to cook for her family for one meal than a
sweet potato. The paper’s campaigning activities included travelling to the
Berkshire home of Caterlink’s chief executive to hand-deliver a letter from
the editor requesting an interview after requests were refused by the
company’s press office.
Eventually, the pressure paid off and it was revealed that Camden Council
had secured the pay increase following lengthy negotiations with Caterlink.
The new deal, worth around £500,000 in total, will mean that, on average,
232 of the lowest-paid workers will be £1,500 better off.
Raising awareness of the threat of online underage grooming

In June 2016, a Jersey Evening Post investigative team was put together
to raise awareness of the threat of online underage grooming. The team
created a fake online profile of a girl and posted it on adult dating apps.
Over the course of the next 12 days, several men made continued contact
with the ‘girl’ and conversations quickly sexualised, even after the team
revealed her to be 14.
Pixilated photos of six men were featured as part of a front-page splash,
with inside pages provided details of the sting and extracts from the
conversations. Transcripts of the conversations were handed to the police.
Four of the six men were arrested and one was charged with grooming
and the possession of indecent images of children. The NSPCC praised the
work of the Post in raising awareness of such an important issue through
hard-hitting public-interest reporting.
 Encourage politicians and public bodies to take action and holds them to
account. A campaign by a local newsbrand can encourage those in power
to take action on issues that a community considers important. For
example, The Eastern Daily Press (EDP) successfully led a campaign for
the dualling of the main route between London and Norfolk, to reduce
traffic congestion. The EDP engaged government officials, held meetings
and ran features to bring the campaign to fruition.68
Freedom of Information (FOI) requests are often used by local

newsbrands to uncover various unreported aspects of a community. For
example, the Northern Echo of north-east England used FOI requests to
show that more than 1,500 children had gone missing from foster care
over four years,69 and a FOI request by the Manchester Evening News
suggested almost 300 convicted criminals had been awarded taxi
licences over a seven year period.70
Newsbrands’ reporting improves political accountability and transparency

at the local and national level.
22
Unveiling junior doctors’ working hours

In Glasgow, The Herald began its investigation into junior doctors’
working hours in Scotland following concerns expressed by key members
of the surgical community. The paper revealed that many junior doctors
worked 90-hour weeks, even though the UK has adopted rules that state
staff should work no more than an average of 48 hours unless they
choose to do so.
The investigation found nine out of 11 Scottish mainland health boards
asked doctors to work 12 day stretches totalling up to 114 hours before
they got a day off.
Following the first story, the father of Lauren Connelly, a junior doctor
who had died driving home from a night shift in Greater Glasgow and
Clyde, contacted the newspaper. The story and his call for an overhaul of
junior doctors' working practices attracted comment from junior doctors
around the world.
When NHS Scotland appointed a new chief executive, The Herald took up
the matter with him directly. New targets have since been announced
governing junior doctor shift patterns, and Health Secretary Shona
Robison has promised a plan to deliver an "actual working week of 48
hours with no averaging of hours as is currently permitted".
Exposing poverty, homelessness and exploitation

Lancashire Evening Post’s investigative reporter Aasma Day was given six
weeks off diary to go out and find real life stories of people trapped on
the margins of society in Preston. During the investigation, Aasma spent
time with some of the organisations and agencies which help those who
are struggling.
Stories included the tale of a hospital nursing assistant who entered the
world of prostitution for extra cash and the Preston mechanic who lost a
finger after being unable to keep up with the demands of loan sharks.
The paper included fact files and helplines with the stories in order to
signpost those in similar situations to organisations that can help.
The Twilight investigation received widespread praise from all sections of
the community including MPs, homeless organisations, charities, police
chiefs and the leader of Preston Council.
Research by Crowd DNA also found that local media is critical in

engendering a sense of belonging in a community. Of the surveyed
respondents, 73% felt that local media was important in helping them feel a
sense of pride in their community. This was higher than the internet (22%),
TV (11%) or commercial radio (11%).71
The sector’s contribution through its content is complemented by Corporate

Social Responsibility programmes, which range from charity donations to
environmental initiatives. Initiatives such as the CN Group’s Cumbria
Community Foundation and the Express and Star’s Cash for the Community
Fund are examples of this.
In particular, the geographic coverage of local news media makes it a

platform for community based fundraising. The Manchester Evening News
triggered a campaign that raised over £1.4 million following an arson attack
on Manchester Dogs Home. Circa £1 million was raised in one day due to
the paper quickly engaging the community. Similarly, the EDP raised
23
£330,000 through a campaign to help those whose homes were damaged

by a coastal storm.
Campaigning to end loneliness

The Yorkshire Post joined forces with the Campaign to End Loneliness in an
effort to tackle a problem which affects more than 92,000 older people
living in the region.
The paper launched an audio archive of real people telling their stories of
loneliness and reported on initiatives taking place across Yorkshire to help
those in need. The Yorkshire Post met with those in the communities going
out of their way to help those suffering from loneliness, and gained support
from then Prime Minister David Cameron.
The paper also staged a regional summit which was attended by almost
100 experts in the field of social care, the voluntary sector, the NHS and
local authorities. Pressure was exerted on local authorities who failed to
make significant mention of loneliness in the Health and Wellbeing
Strategies, with seven out of nine highlighted as lacking pledging action.
5.2 A strong sense of community can positively influence social

and economic indicators
As the economic literature shows, enhanced local identity and community

cohesion improves a number of economic and social indicators.
A UK government report on the Economic Case for Cohesion presents

evidence of improved community cohesion leading to lower crime, lower
unemployment and improved health outcomes. The report also estimates
potential cost savings of £193 million to £530 million in England and Wales
for 2007/8 from a reduction in crime due to improved community
cohesion.72 In particular, it shows:
 Impact on crime: One study looking at community cohesion in 20 local

areas in the UK found that all crime decreased by 3% as sense of
community increased by ‘one unit’.73
 Impact on health outcomes: Various studies show community cohesion

to reduce the likelihood of acquiring certain health ailments such as
depression and loneliness and to reduce the probability of suicide.
Buonfino and Hilder (2006) reviewed the evidence of the impacts of
social networks and found that much of it suggested that social
connections inhibit depression. People with close friends were less likely
to experience sadness, loneliness and low self-esteem.
 Impact on employment: There is evidence that social networks can help

people find jobs. For example, US research by Granovetter (1973 and
1995) found that social networks can provide people with advice, job
leads, strategic information and letters of recommendation. In a survey
of residents of a Massachusetts town the author found that over 50% of
people found their jobs through social contacts.
The case studies in this section illustrate the range of contributions of local
and regional newsbrands, from informing citizens to highlighting community
issues and strengthening local democracy.
24
6 A channel for
businesses to
connect with
customers
News media brands’ trusted content provides an important platform for
firms to promote their products and connect with their customers.
Readers often spend focused time on a newsbrand. When reading a national

newspaper, 60% of the time the reader is engaged with only this media.74
According to Newsworks’ analysis of NRS data, newsbrands continue to
be a medium for reaching high-income audiences. Ninety-five per cent of
ABC1s and 98% of chief income earners with an annual net income of over
£50,000 read newsbrands every month, while 90% of main shoppers also
do so.75
The establishment of news media across multiple platforms, primarily print,

desktop and mobile, provides advertisers with a multi-platform setting from
which to reach potential customers. Research commissioned by Newsworks,
the marketing body for national newsbrands, finds advertising campaigns
that include newspapers achieve a higher campaign ROI on average
compared to campaigns that do not. For example, campaign ROI is found to
be 20% higher for Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCGs) and 71% for the
automotive industry when newspapers are part of the media mix.76 The
findings are based on meta-analysis of over 500 econometric models from
2011-2016. Further research commissioned by Newsworks finds that
combining print and digital advertising improves how a consumer interacts
with and values a brand and translates into a higher return on investment
for the advertiser.77
The news media industry is also one of the key channels UK SMEs use to
advertise. A survey of NMA members estimates that SME advertising in the
local and regional news media industry makes up 78% of adverts, and
83% of campaigns are local or regional.78
Regionally based SMEs recognise the value in the reputation of local press
and its trusted content. Of the 40 million people that local newsbrands
reached in print and digital in 2015, 65% said local adverts help them to
make decisions.79
The Manchester Evening News and the Yorkshire Post are both regional
papers who present a section in their online business pages specifically for
SMEs. Included in the articles of these sections are celebrations of local
SME achievements and reviews of new restaurant openings, raising
awareness of local business. Many publishers, such as the KM Media Group
and CN Group, host annual local business awards celebrating local
business.
25
National newsbrands can also springboard SMEs into the public eye.
Competitions have been run by both the Times and the Telegraph, in
collaboration with SME lenders, to encourage The Apprentice-style
entrepreneurship.
National newsbrands celebrating entrepreneurship

A competition run by The Telegraph in partnership with HSBC allowed
small entrepreneurial businesses to pitch their product to a board of
investors, with the winner gaining £150,000 of investment.
Though there can only be one winner, recognising a group of high growth
SMEs on a national level sparks inspiration among budding
entrepreneurs. Exhibiting the best of the UK’s SMEs to the newsbrand’s
readership could encourage future UK start-ups.
An Advertising Association study found that on average, SMEs achieve £2 in

sales for every £1 spent on advertising.80 Based on this estimate, print and
digital advertising in local and regional news media could have supported
over £1 billion in sales for SMEs in 2015, assuming a similar return on
advertising as the average across media.81
Fostering SME advertising can unlock growth opportunities in the UK since

many SMEs make limited use of advertising. The SME population
contributes only 18% of advertising spend in the UK, despite accounting for
nearly 40% of all turnover. Only 30% of UK SMEs advertise.82
26
7 Appendix:
Methodology
7.1 News media sector output
As defined in the Introduction, the term ‘news media industry’ in this study
comprises:
 Local, regional and national news media organisations; and

 The newspaper distribution network, in particular retailers and
wholesalers involved in getting print copies to readers.
The survey conducted on a sample of NMA members for this report does not
cover the whole industry. In order to give a holistic view of the entire news
media industry, the data collected in the survey is uplifted according to an
estimate of the total industry revenue.
Circulation revenues are estimated by the NMA using audited and non-
audited retail circulation figures and cover prices collected by ABC and other
sources. Total advertising revenues are estimated by AA WARC. The
circulation and advertising revenue figures from those sources are
combined into an estimate of the industry’s revenue of £4.8 billion by the
NMA. Advertising revenues accrue only to news media organisations, whilst
circulation revenues accrue to both news media organisations and
newspaper distributors. As noted in the report, for £1 of cover price, on
average 72% goes to the news media organisation and the remaining 28%
goes to newspaper retailers and wholesalers.
This total industry revenue is adjusted to exclude the Financial Times from
the analysis.83 A large number of digital subscriptions and high international
presence mean that the Financial Times has a somewhat different profile to
other UK news media organisations. These differences would make
extrapolation to their expenditure profile from NMA member data potentially
inaccurate.
The NMA members that completed the questionnaire make up 82% of total
industry revenue, after excluding the Financial Times. The survey of NMA
members covers 73% of total publishing industry advertising revenue and
almost 90% of total publishing industry circulation revenue. A number of
news media organisations not included in the survey are small independent
regionals who predominantly earn revenues from advertising.
Industry revenues are outlined in Table 1.
27
Table 1 News media industry survey and estimated revenues
Revenues
Survey of NMA Estimated total Survey as a share of
members industry revenue industry
News media
Publishing £3,296 £4,081 81%
organisations
Wholesalers £122 £135 90%
Newspaper distribution
Retailers £452 £502 90%
Total £3,870 £4,719 82%

Additional ‘other’ news media organisation revenues
£328 N/A N/A
obtained in member survey
News media organisations’ total GVA and employment contribution is based

on expenditure, tax, profit and employment information provided by NMA
members. The UK only output reported in the survey of NMA members is
uplifted by the missing share of news media organisations’ revenue to
capture total news media organisations UK output. UK only output
comprises wages, taxes profits and supply chain spend in the UK.
Newspaper retailer and wholesaler total GVA and employment contributions

are estimated using the following sources:
 Sector revenue from newspaper distribution;

 Retail and wholesale sectors propensity to import estimated from the
ONS input-output tables;
 UK newspapers circulation in the UK and abroad, from the ABC; and
 ONS GVA and employment to output ratios and effects multipliers.
In the absence of other information, it is assumed that UK retailers and

wholesalers’ wages, taxes and profits that relate to newspaper distribution
all accrue to the UK. While some of these elements of value added may leak
outside the UK in practice, the use of the retail and wholesale trade sector's
average import propensity is likely to overstate the level of imports to
support newspaper distribution, and hence the results are deemed to be a
reasonable approximation to newspaper distribution's GVA and employment
impacts on balance.
7.2 Economic and employment impacts
7.2.1 GVA and employment effects
The GVA impacts and the employment impacts are estimated using Type I
(indirect) and II (induced) GVA effects multipliers, which are applied to UK
only industry output:
 GVA effects multipliers calculate the impact on GVA throughout the

economy that comes from a change in output for the industry. That is,
for every £1 million of output that an industry produces, the amount of
GVA supported across the economy.
 Employment effects multipliers estimate the impact on the number of
FTEs employed across the economy following a change in output for the
industry. That is, for every £1 million of output that an industry
produces, the number of FTEs supported across the economy.
28
The GVA and employment effects multipliers are derived using:
 ONS Input-Output Analytical Tables (IOATs).84

 Household Income, published as part of the ONS National Accounts Blue
Book.85
 ONS Type I employment multipliers and effects.86
IOATs are published as part of the UK’s national accounts. The tables
illustrate the flows of products and services between industries,
government, households and non-profit organisations for a single year. This
includes the types and quantities of products bought and used as inputs by
each sector. These inter-industry flows are used to estimate the economic
and employment impact of a single sector on the whole economy.
The analysis presented in this report applies GVA and employment effect
multipliers from the following sectors:
 Publishing Services (SIC code 58), under which newspaper and news
media publishing falls, is used for news media organisations output.
Newspaper and/or news media publishing is the primary activity for all
organisations considered in this study. Where an organisation
undertakes operations outside of newspaper and/or news media
publishing, the associated revenues and expenditures are excluded from
the analysis.
 Wholesale trade services excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles (SIC
code 46) is used for wholesale newspaper distribution output, under
which wholesale of newspapers falls.
 Retail trade services excluding motor vehicles and motorcycles (SIC code
47) is used for retail newspaper distribution output, under which the
retail sale of newspapers falls.
The ONS publishes IOATs roughly every five years, with the most recent
edition, 2010, published in 2014. This edition has been used to derive the
Type I and Type II effects multipliers used in this study. Input-output
effects can be assumed to be relatively stable over a period of a number of
years, as long as the structure of the economy does not significantly change
(e.g. technological or relative price changes).87
7.2.2 Economic impacts
The total GVA supported in the UK economy by the news media sector is
made up of direct, indirect and induced GVA.
Direct GVA is the value added created directly by the industry. Direct GVA
of the news media organisations in the survey is estimated using the sum of
survey wages, statutory profit and taxes for the whole industry. Direct GVA
of wholesalers and retailers is estimated by applying the relevant industry
GVA to output ratio to the industry output.
Indirect GVA is the value added supported through other parties in the
supply chain, that is, the supply chain activity generated in the UK economy
by news media organisations. Induced GVA is supported through the
incomes of the employees of the news media industry and its supply chain.
These result in increased spending and increased final demand in the
economy.
29
The Type I and II GVA effects multipliers relevant to each industry are
applied to the UK only output for each industry to obtain induced and
indirect GVA:
 Type I (indirect) GVA effects multipliers estimate the total of direct and
indirect GVA. Indirect GVA is the GVA supported through the news
media industry’ supply chain demand.
 Type II (induced) GVA effects multipliers estimate the total of direct,

indirect and induced GVA.
Table 2 presents the results using only NMA survey data and the results
following the uplift to the news media industry.
Table 2 News media industry GVA with uplift to industry
News media Retail distribution

Wholesale distribution
organisations
Surveyed Surveyed Surveyed

Uplifted to Uplifted to Uplifted to
NMA NMA NMA
industry industry industry
members members members
UK only output (£m) £3,393 £4,201 £113 £125 £429 £476
Direct GVA (£m) £1,494 £1,850 £51 £57 £247 £274
Indirect GVA (£m) £1,395 £1,727 £41 £46 £125 £139
Induced GVA (£m) £850 £1,052 £29 £32 £105 £116
Total GVA (£m) £3,739 £4,629 £121 £135 £477 £529
7.2.3 Employment impacts
Direct employment is defined here as the number of FTEs employed by an

industry. News media organisations’ employment is obtained through the
survey of NMA members for news media organisations, and uplifted to gain
a view for all news media organisations in aggregate using the survey to
total share of news media organisations’ revenue (81%).
Direct employment of wholesale and retail newspaper distribution supported

by newspaper activities is estimated using newspaper distribution output
and FTE-output ratios implied by the ONS input output tables. An FTE-
output ratio gives the number of FTEs employed for every £1 million of
output produced by a sector.
Indirect and induced employment give an estimate of how many FTE jobs
are supported throughout the economy by an industry. Indirect
employment is supported by supply chain purchases by the news media
industry, and induced employment is supported by the wages spent by the
employees of the news media industry and its supply chain. For example, a
news media employee that spends their wages in a restaurant is supporting
the employment at that restaurant.
Type I and Type II employment effects multipliers are applied to UK only

output to obtain indirect and induced employment. As with the GVA effects
30
multipliers, two employment effects are used to estimate the number of

FTEs supported in the UK economy:
 Type I (indirect) employment effects multipliers estimate the number of

FTEs supported due to supply chain demand by the news media
industry.
 Type II (induced) employment effects multipliers estimate the number

of FTEs supported due to industry employee incomes. As employees
spend their wages on goods and services, more FTEs are required to
provide these.
Following the same approach as with GVA, publishing, wholesale and retail
employment effects multipliers are applied to the relevant outputs.
Table 3 presents the results from the NMA survey and after the uplift to the
whole news media industry.
Table 3 News media industry FTE employment with uplift to industry
News media Retail distribution

Wholesale distribution
organisations
Surveyed Surveyed Surveyed

Uplifted to Uplifted to Uplifted to
NMA NMA NMA
industry industry industry
members members members
Direct employment 23,120 28,630 1,190* 1,320 6,980* 7,740
Indirect employment 22,040 27,290 770 860 2,280 2,530
Induced employment 13,510 16,720 450 510 1,670 1,850
Total employment 58,670 72,640 2,420 2,690 10,930 12,120
*The direct employment by the wholesaler and retailer distribution network is estimated using wholesaler and
retailer output estimated using the revenue data provided in the survey, and FTE – output ratios from the ONS
input output tables.
7.3 Executive interviews
A number of interviews were conducted with senior executives from a

selection of national and regional news media organisations. These
interviews were used to understand their views on the sector’s unique role
and the wider context in which news media businesses operate. The
interviewees were:
 Ashley Highfield, CEO, Johnston Press
 David Dinsmore, COO, News UK
 Geraldine Allison, Chairman, KM Group
 Guy Black, Executive Director, and Peter Lindsay, Director of

Strategy, Telegraph Media Group
 Henry Faure Walker, CEO, Newsquest Media Group
 Kevin Beatty, CEO, DMG Media
 Simon Fox, CEO, Trinity Mirror
31
1
Throughout this report, the news media industry is defined as local, regional and
national news media organisations plus the newspaper distribution network, in
particular retailers and wholesalers of newspapers. It includes the print and/or digital
publishing activity of news media organisations in the UK. The main news media
organisation excluded from the analysis is the Financial Times. Although some of the
news media industry’s organisations may offer radio or TV services to supplement
their main activity, organisations whose primary activities are TV, radio and/or
magazines are not included as part of the sector for the purposes of this report.
2
Newswhip; http://www.newsmediauk.org/report/index.html
3
National Readership Survey, for the period October 2015 to September 2016;
http://www.nrs.co.uk/latest-results/facts-and-figures/newspapers-factsandfigures/
4
National Readership Survey, for the period October 2015 to September 2016;
http://www.nrs.co.uk/latest-results/facts-and-figures/newspapers-factsandfigures/
5
Revenue per user is estimated using data from a number of sources, including AA
WARC, Circulation Executive retail sales revenue as provided by the NMA, the NRS,
ONS and the ‘UK news media: less advertising, new models’ report published by
Enders Analysis (June 2016).
Enders estimate that 88% of the industry revenue comes from print. In order to
reflect the industry total, this is applied to the print advertising and circulation
revenue from the sources above to approximate industry total revenue. Financial
Times revenues are excluded from the analysis.
The NRS consumption of newsbrands data used is for the period July 2015 to June
2016.
The revenue per user for print includes revenues accrued by newspaper wholesalers
and retailers. Excluding that revenue, the revenue per user for print is £89.
6
Enders Analysis; News Phase for Newsbrands (2015).
7
Newsworks; http://www.newsworks.org.uk/Topics-themes/the-battle-for-
attention/87726
8
Based on a survey of NMA members.
9
Local Media Works (2015); http://www.localmediauk.org/Industry-Snapshot-2015
10
Throughout this report, the news media industry is defined as local, regional and
national news media organisations plus the newspaper distribution network, in
particular retailers and wholesalers of newspapers.
11
O&O Advisory; UK News Provision at the Crossroads (2015)
12
O&O Advisory; UK News Provision at the Crossroads (2015)
13
National Readership Survey; http://www.nrs.co.uk/latest-results/facts-and-
figures/newspapers-factsandfigures/
14
Ofcom; http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/research/tv-
research/news/2015/News_consumption_in_the_UK_2015_executive_summary.pdf
15
research/news/2015/News_consumption_in_the_UK_2015_report.pdf
16
Newswhip; http://www.newsmediauk.org/report/index.html
17
18
OC&C Strategy Consultants; Is Content King After all?
19
Enders Analysis, UK news media: less advertising, new models, June 2016, based
on WARC, ABC and company reports.
20
Enders Analysis; News Phase for Newsbrands (2015).
21
Based on a survey of NMA members. The remaining revenue comes from contract
printing, news syndication and other sources.
22
See footnote 5.
32
23
Of this, £4.1 billion accrue to news media organisations and £0.7 billion to retail
and wholesale newspaper distributors. This revenue consists of print circulation,
digital subscription and print and digital advertising.
24
Please refer to the Appendix for an overview of how this is estimated. Note that
this figure excludes the Financial Times. Of the £4.1 billion in estimated news media
organisation revenues, 81% is based on a survey of NMA members.
25
This report estimates the gross economic impact of the news media industry,
rather than its net impact. It is very difficult to imagine what news provision would
look like without the news media industry and for that reason the sector’s net impact
is not analysed.
26
Revenues that accrue to news media organisations amount to £4.4 billion in 2015,
including £4.1 billion from advertising and circulation (excluding the share of total
circulation revenue that accrues to newspaper retailer and wholesaler distributors),
and £0.3 billion from other activities such as news syndication and contract printing.
27
Expenditure, taxes and profits are assumed to be similar, as a proportion of
revenue, for the remaining 19% as for the companies that participated in the survey,
and hence the data is uplifted for those remaining companies to reflect the total
industry. See appendix for description of methodology. Employee costs include wages
and salaries, social security costs and taxes, pension costs and training costs. ‘Other’
costs include financial costs and legal provisions.
Costs are measured on an accounting basis, meaning that capital expenditure and
other capitalisable items are depreciated or amortised where appropriate. An
accounting rather than cash basis is adopted in order to provide a more stable view
of the scale of the sector over time that is not affected by payment timelines, and
that is more consistent with statutory reporting.
Accordingly, and to ensure consistency across members, statutory profit is used for
the GVA analysis. This includes exceptional and one off expenditures across
members, which are included in statutory profit but not in other profit measures (e.g.
adjusted profit). Depending on the context, news media organisations may reference
different profit measures. For example, adjusted profit is sometimes reported to
reflect the sector’s longer term operational profitability. In the news media industry
in 2015, adjusted profit is higher than statutory profit. Where impairments of
intangible assets were significant, they were added back to the statutory profit
measure (as impairments are non-cash, one-off and are often of such quantum that
they may distort the statutory results).
28
Based on total intermediate demand in UK Input-Output Analytical Tables, ONS
and information provided in a survey of NMA members, assuming that those news
media organisations not surveyed have the same business profile as those in the
survey.
29
This estimate is based on the cover price revenues received by the NMA members
and their respective distributions across wholesalers and retailers. Of a total £670
million, which covers retailers and wholesalers in the UK and abroad, 90% is based
on a survey of NMA members.
Of this £670 million, £640 million accrues to UK retailers and wholesalers. The
adjustment is based on analysis of national newspaper total circulation in three
months (November 2015, April 2016 and August 2016) which imply that on average
6% of their circulation is outside of the UK. It is assumed that regional newspapers
are only circulated in the UK. The UK wholesaler and retailer revenue is used to
calculate the total GVA impact of the industry in section 2.3.
30
Assuming the average teacher’s salary is £37,800 and using data collected in a
survey of NMA members; https://getintoteaching.education.gov.uk/funding-and-
salary/teacher-salaries
31
UK Government Creative Industries Economic Estimates;
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/creative-industries-economic-estimates-
january-2016
32
HM Treasury, The Plan for Growth;
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/2215
14/2011budget_growth.pdf
33
33
UK Government Creative Industries Economic Estimates;
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/creative-industries-economic-estimates-
january-2016
The UK Government Creative Industries Economic Estimates estimate newspaper

publishing direct GVA (excluding supply chain and ripple effects across the economy)
at £2.4 billion in 2014. This number has been used when comparing creative
industries estimates for consistency in the time period and in how direct GVA is
measured across the sectors.
34
Department for Culture, Media & Sport, Creative Industries Economic Estimates
(2016);
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/5230
24/Creative_Industries_Economic_Estimates_January_2016_Updated_201605.pdf
35
The UK Government’s economic estimates for the creative industries have been
used to make this comparison. They estimate GVA for businesses within the Creative
Industries using approximate GVA (aGVA) from the Annual Business Survey. aGVA
can be used as an approximation of the National Accounts measure of GVA; Office for
National Statistics: A Comparison between Annual Business Survey and National
Accounts Measures of Value Added (2014)
36
Department for Culture, Media & Sport, Creative Industries Focus;
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/creative-industries-2016-focus-on/key-
findings
37
The Work Foundation, Staying Ahead: the economic performance of the UK’s
creative industries.
38
Estimate by Mediatique Ltd based on 2013 data;
http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/insidethebbc/howwework/reports/pdf/media
tique_online_news_report_dec_2014.pdf; Mediatique Ltd also referenced by O&O at
http://www.newsmediauk.org/write/MediaUploads/PDF%20Docs/OandO_NMA_-
_UK_news_provision_at_the_crossroads.pdf
39
Based on a survey of NMA members, grossed up to reflect all news media
organisations.
40
The average number of freelancers is based on a survey of NMA members. The
average excludes two members who do not track freelancers and news contributors
separately.
41
42
43
Based on a survey of NMA members, grossed up to reflect all news media
organisations.
The Editors’ code is a set of rules to maintain press standards that newspapers and
44
magazines regulated by IPSO have agreed to follow.

45
Newsworks; http://www.newsworks.org.uk/News-and-Opinion/how-influential-
was-the-press-during-the-referendum
46
Newsworks; http://www.newsworks.org.uk/News-and-Opinion/eu-referendum-
boosts-newspapers-print-circulation-and-online-trac
47
Newsworks; http://www.newsworks.org.uk/News-and-Opinion/nrs-padd-90-of-gb-
reads-newsbrands-every-month-
48
Newsworks; http://www.newsworks.org.uk/News-and-Opinion/newsbrands-and-
twitter
49
Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, Medical and Health News and
Information in the UK Media: The Current State of Knowledge.
50
Ofcom, The Communications Market Report (2016);
http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/market-data-research/market-
data/communications-market-reports/
51
Vocabulary from adolescence to middle-age, Institute of Education University of
London (2014).
34
52
Read On Get On: How reading can help children escape poverty, Save the Children
(2014).
53
EU High Level Group Experts on Literacy, September 2014;
http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/education_culture/repository/education/policy/school/doc/lit
eracy-report_en.pdf
Evening Standard; http://www.standard.co.uk/news/get-london-reading/evening-

standard-s-reading-campaign-is-template-for-rest-of-britain-says-head-of-ofsted-
7753604.html
54
Literacy Trust, Oxfordshire Reading Campaign final evaluation report (2014);
http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/research/nlt_research/6560_oxfordshire_reading_ca
mpaign_final_evaluation_report
55
Literacy Changes Lives 2014: A new perspective on health, employment and crime,
National Literacy Trust (2014).
56
Based on April 2016 rate of £7.20 for 25 and over; https://www.gov.uk/national-
minimum-wage-rates
57
CBI (2015); http://news.cbi.org.uk/news/skills-emergency-could-starve-growth-
cbi-pearson-survey/
58
OECD Skills Outlook (2015); http://www.oecd.org/edu/oecd-skills-outlook-2015-
9789264234178-en.htm
59
Literacy scores, human capital and growth across fourteen OECD countries,
Statistics Canada (2004).
60
Literacy Changes Lives 2014: A new perspective on health, employment and crime,
National Literacy Trust (2014).
61
Ibid.
62
National Council for the Training of Journalists
63
NLA Annual Report; http://www.nlamediaaccess.com/uploads/public/nla-
annualreport-2016-webversion.pdf
64
The number of titles only includes media organisations that are NMA members, the
actual number is therefore greater.
65
Local Media Works; http://www.localmediauk.org/Industry-Snapshot-2015
66
Local Media Works and Jicreg database; Many of the postcodes not covered are
industrial/business parks that do not have any households or populations listed
against them.
67
research/news/2015/News_consumption_in_the_UK_2015_executive_summary.pdf
68
http://www.localnewspaperweek.co.uk/Making-a-Difference/75078
69
Northern Echo, 2015;
http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/13634510.More_than_1_500_North_East_c
hildren_missing_from_care_since_2011__Echo_investigation/
70
Manchester Evening News, 2014;
http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-
news/revealed-how-officials-sex-offenders-8293131
71
Local Media Works; http://www.localmediauk.org/Loving-Local
72
Department for Communities and Local Government, The Economic Case for
Cohesion (2009);
http://www.tedcantle.co.uk/publications/051%20the%20economic%20case%20for%
20cohesion,.pdf
73
The sense of community factor captured aspects such as whether neighbours look
out for each other and pull together to improve the community, as well as aspects
that relate to camaraderie such as whether people are proud of their neighbourhood
and enjoy living there.
35
74
Newsworks; http://www.newsworks.org.uk/Topics-themes/the-battle-for-
attention/87726
75
NRS PADD http://www.newsworks.org.uk/News-and-Opinion/nrs-padd-
newsbrands-reach-91-of-gb-every-month
76
Newsworks; https://effectiveness.newsworks.org.uk/advertising-roi-study/
77
Newsworks; https://effectiveness.newsworks.org.uk/multi-platform-study/
78
79
Local Media Works (2015); http://www.localmediauk.org/Industry-Snapshot-2015
80
Advertising Association, Advertising Pays 2: How advertising can unlock UK growth
potential (2013); http://www.adassoc.org.uk/wp-
content/uploads/2014/09/Advertising-Pays-2-How-advertising-can-unlock-UK-
growth-potential.pdf
81
This estimation is based on advertising revenue data and an estimate of SME
advertising share for regional newsbrands, both provided by NMA members in a
survey, plus the ROI on SME advertising estimated in a study for the Advertising
Association (2013, http://www.adassoc.org.uk/wp-
growth-potential.pdf)
82
Advertising Association, Advertising Pays 2: How advertising can unlock UK growth
potential (2013); http://www.adassoc.org.uk/wp-
growth-potential.pdf
83
The most recent full accounts filed by The Financial Times Limited on Companies
House are for 2014, where £163 million of turnover is reported to be in the UK. The
£4.8 billion industry revenue estimate includes the Financial Times advertising
revenue but excludes its circulation revenue. In the absence of further information,
50% of the Financial Times’ UK turnover is assumed to be from advertising roughly in
line with the industry, and hence £81 million of revenue are excluded from the total
industry revenue estimate for the purpose of this study’s extrapolation of NMA
member data. https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/00227590/filing-
history
84
ONS United Kingdom Input-Output Analytical Tables, 2010;
https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/nationalaccounts/supplyandusetables/datasets/uki
nputoutputanalyticaltablesdetailed
85
ONS United Kingdom National Accounts, The Blue Book, Chapter 6;
http://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossdomesticproductgdp/compendium/unitedkingd
omnationalaccountsthebluebook/2015-10-
30/unitedkingdomnationalaccountsthebluebook
86
ONS United Kingdom Type I employment multipliers and effects by SU114
industry and sector (market, government and NPISH), 2010;
http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/about-ons/business-transparency/freedom-of-
information/what-can-i-request/published-ad-hoc-data/econ/december-
2014/provisional-estimates-of-type-uk-employment-multipliers-and-effects.xls
87
The Stability of Regional Input-Output Multipliers (1977), Conway, R.S.
36
© 2016 Deloitte LLP. All rights reserved.
Deloitte LLP is a limited liability partnership registered in England and Wales with
registered number OC303675 and its registered office at 2 New Street Square,
London EC4A 3BZ, United Kingdom.
Deloitte LLP is the United Kingdom member firm of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu
Limited (“DTTL”), a UK private company limited by guarantee, whose member firms
are legally separate and independent entities. Please see
www.deloitte.co.uk/about for a detailed description of the legal structure of DTTL
and its member firms.
37

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UK News Media: an engine of original news

content and democracy

Foreword by the News Media Association 4

Foreword by the News

Ashley Highfield David Dinsmore

In 2015, the UK news media industry1 contributed an estimated £5.3 billion

UK newsbrands conduct investigative journalism that is a primary source of

Such stories hold politicians and public institutions accountable, increase

UK newsbrands are an engine of original news content that is consumed

Through their digital presence UK newsbrands reach larger audiences than

Newsbrands are experimenting with new digital business and monetisation

The multi-platform reach and trusted content of UK newsbrands makes

The news media industry supports value in many different businesses

UK newsbrands are influential household names, operating in an evolving

The UK news media industry has far-reaching appeal and provides a

While UK newsbrands have historically had a strong print circulation, users

Over the course of 2015, it is estimated that UK newsbrands’ content drove

Figure 1 Newsbrand consumption across print and digital

Source: Deloitte analysis; NMA member data.

Despite reaching large audiences through the combination of digital and

Digital revenues are increasing (the digital revenues of national newspapers

Against this background, the News Media Association (NMA) has

This report discusses the contribution of the sector to UK GVA and

These revenues support expenditure and employment across the UK

Figure 2 Economic and employment impact of the news media industry

Source: Deloitte analysis; NMA member data.

2.1 News media organisations’ expenditure contributes to the

In 2015, news media organisations’ revenues26 translated into an estimated

Figure 3 News media organisations expenditure

Source: Deloitte analysis; NMA member data.

2.2 Distribution of newspapers supports value across a

On average, a national news media industry organisation sells papers in

By distributing newspapers, wholesalers and retailers receive more than a

Figure 4 Distribution of the cover price

Source: Deloitte analysis; NMA member data

2.3 The news media industry contributes to UK GVA

The news media industry’s total GVA impact is made up of:

 £2.2 billion of direct GVA contribution through wages paid to UK

 £1.9 billion of indirect GVA contribution as a result of purchases from UK

2.4 The news media industry supports UK employment

Extensive expenditure in the UK and direct UK employment means that the

 The news media industry and its distribution network employs an

number of people involved in the sector as some employees work part-

 An additional 19,100 FTE roles are supported throughout the UK

News media organisations’ total GVA and employment contribution is based

These figures do not include jobs supported through the success of an

2.5 Newsbrands’ content production is a component part of the

As part of the creative industries, the publishing sector contributes £10.2

The UK news media industry invests significant resources in producing

The UK news media industry invests in training journalists to support the

Discovering child abuse in Rotherham, South Yorkshire

2,530 in distribution and 7,570 in marketing employed in the sector,

3.2 The news media industry produces authoritative content

They bring misconduct by institutions and public figures to the attention of

Investigating offshore holdings of politicians and businessmen

Newsbrands are a trusted source of information. In a world with abundance

advice and training to journalists. This helps to maintain quality standards

Unveiling unethical fundraising practices by some national

Exposing alleged abuse of power by politicians

By informing citizens about important issues and improving transparency