Show your support this Indie News Week
- Beckie Shuker
- Jun 12
- 3 min read
It's the second annual Indie News Week and for the first time, PINF is launching a Local News Petition.
Indie News Week is finally here! From Monday 9th to Sunday 15th June (and beyond!) indie journalists up and down the UK are opening up their newsrooms, hosting panel discussions, guided walks and much more.
More on the week’s festivities later; right now, indie news providers need your help to regenerate local news in the UK. For the first time, PINF has launched a petition calling on the UK Government to address the local news crisis.
Big tech greed, corporate takeovers and declining advertising revenues mean that Britain’s independent local news providers are facing a tough battle to get trustworthy information into the hands of communities.
Misinformation is on the rise. In the hardest-hit areas, disinformation is stoking up tension and riots are breaking out. Networks are being manipulated. Convincing, AI-generated deepfakes are fooling even the most sceptical users.
People need reliable information and shared understandings to participate meaningfully in their community. And yet, the local news crisis in the UK has left over 4 million Brits living in news deserts – areas that are entirely without quality local journalism.
No news is bad news. Something needs to change.
Local people deserve reliable information that speaks to them, for them and with them. They need news providers that live in their communities and walk alongside them, that speak truth to power, celebrate local heroes and shine a light on local issues.
Across the country, a dedicated movement of independent journalists is holding power to account, strengthening pride in place and supporting people to participate in their communities.
But more than ever, local news outlets need our support. They are having to fight to keep local news alive.
We need politicians to step up to the challenge of regenerating local news, so that indie news providers can continue getting information to the people who need it most for generations to come.
We ASPIRE for better news: local news that is Accountable, Sustainable, in the Public interest, Innovative, Representative and Engaging (‘ASPIRE’).
We want every community in the UK to benefit from local public interest news, decreasing dependence on social media and limiting the spread of harmful disinformation.
That’s why PINF’s Local News Commission has come up with a plan to solve the local news crisis by 2035, by calling on the government to support six recommendations:
A Local News Stimulation Fund of £15m for the next 10 years to help local news make the digital transition.
Incentives for philanthropists, big tech and members of the public to support local news.
A workforce plan to ensure that journalists are drawn from all backgrounds and equipped to serve their communities.
A fair deal for local news providers using the new Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act to level the playing field with big tech
A new deal between local government and local news in which local communities are informed and empowered
A new relationship between the BBC and local news at Charter Renewal in 2027 building on the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
Sign PINF’s petition to call on the government to ensure a bright future for local news for generations to come.
This week, we’ve already seen the London Newsmakers’ two excellent panels, Greater Govanhill, the Ferret and the New Internationalist team up for their News → Action event in Glasgow (pictured above), a successful cafe-quiz night at the West Leeds Dispatch and an inspiring nature walk at Ferryhill Carrs.
And there’s yet more to come! Friday 13th will see events in Preston, Durham, Manchester, Eastbourne and on the Isle of Wight. Over the weekend, you can get involved in a Welsh Language Fair at the University of Wrexham on Saturday and a Guided Walk in Greenwich Park on Sunday.
On Monday, Bylines Network will host a panel on diversity in the media and on Thursday next week, you can catch the Salamander and Greenwich Wire’s second Future of London News event in Lewisham.
Get the full list of events and participating news providers on the Indie News Week site.
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