Scotland’s newspapers are some of the oldest, and were once among the most prestigious, in the world. But there are few foreign correspondents left. None of our newspapers has a staff correspondent covering Ukraine – a major war in Europe! – or a foreign correspondent on the staff at all.
In an age rife with disinformation and lies, we desperately need this expertise and connection – a correspondent can’t be replaced by rehashed agency copy. The foreign sections of our newspapers – or what’s left of them – are starting to sound and look identical and impersonal.
Imagine if there was a Scottish public interest journalism institute – supporting local, international and specialist journalism, but also acting as an advocate for the kind of strong, trusted reporting every citizen needs.
I was lucky to have work commissioned often by the excellent Sunday Post while in Ukraine – and David Pratt’s coverage in other Scottish papers is obviously brilliant – but the fact remains that it’s freelancers doing this work, where once newspapers could send their own reporters off to cover big global stories.
Compounding the problem is, according to Stout, the increasing difficulty young journalists from ordinary working families face in getting a foot in the door.
These days getting started in a journalism career is hugely expensive. People have to accept unpaid internships, half-funded opportunities plus the growing expectation that they have not just a degree but a postgraduate journalism qualification. That takes tens of thousands of pounds.
The problem isn’t specific to Scotland but Stout argues that Scotland should be leading the way in tackling it.
Following the pandemic NUJ Scotland put forward a set of proposals, including a publicly funded institute, which initially found extensive support in the Scottish Parliament.
The institute’s work would involve raising awareness of, and advocating for, public interest journalism, through advocacy and, it is hoped, funding.
A Public Interest Journalism Working Group was established in 2021 but there has been little progress, and it now falls to Culture Secretary Angus Robertson to push matters forward.
This not just about how we understand foreign affairs and how we tackle misinformation, but about basic democracy functioning in Scotland. Hopefully MSPs and ministers understand that though journalists can be a pain in the arse for them, a news vacuum full of disinformation and conspiracy would be much worse.
(Each year Wigtown Book Festival organises events by some of the world’s leading journalists in order to bring audiences the unfiltered insights and understanding of the people who bear first-hand witness to the events shaping our world.
These trusted voices cut through the agendas of governments, powerful business leaders and politicians to show us everything from the realities of everything from war and famine to climate change – and often the individual human stories of those who bear the consequences.)
Adrian Turpin, Wigtown Book Festival Artistic Director, said: “During my own career as a newspaper journalist in Scotland and elsewhere in the UK I witnessed an alarming decline in the number of specialist reporters and correspondents.
“Specialists like Jen Stout are vital if we are going to have a media that upholds democracy and freedom by bring us well-researched stories and by holding the powerful to account.
“And here at the festival some of the most compelling and popular events we hold each year are led by respected journalists who have spent decades getting to understand their beat – whether that’s as journalists covering war, overseas events, politics, the environment, health, economics or any of the other forces that affect our world.
“It’s of enormous importance that we find a way to ensure that high-quality journalism can flourish and guarantee that future generations have access to expert, independent journalism.”
Featured image: Jen Stout at Wigtown Book Festival by Colin Hattersley. Post adapted from a new release by
See also: David Gow, Death by a thousand cuts, Cosmopolitan Villager on Substack; A future for news: the news recovery plan for the news industry, NUJ; Scotland’s sustainable media future: challenges and opportunities, Glasgow University Media Group
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