Behind Local News Weekly: The UK riots stories which remind of of the importance of local journalism
Hello,
This week’s Behind Local News is somewhat overdue. That’s because as we set about writing the newsletter last week, events were so fast moving it became clear it made more sense to wait a while before looking in depth at 10 days which showed why local journalism matters so much.
Thankfully, the violence seen in towns and cities around the UK has stopped. Local journalists are well-versed in covering breaking news in real-time these days. But the last 10 days has thrown into sharp focus the role local journalism plays in fighting disinformation in real-time too.
Today’s newsletter is therefore a bit different. Each week, you’ll normally find someone from regional journalism writing for us on a topic which matters to them. Last week wasn’t the week to be asking for extra articles about what was going on.
Instead, we’ve curated some of the compelling eyewitness accounts and reflections from journalists who’ve witnessed violence in the communities they call home, and then seen how local people have responded.
Our long read this week looks at the front pages of regional newspapers from around the UK over the last 10 days, starting with the Liverpool Echo — the title which covers Southport, where disinformtion fuelled the violence to start, and also the title which saw some of the worst violence the following weekend.
Substack is telling us this email is likely too long for many inboxes — if you want to go straight to the long read, you can find it here. And if there are papers missing we should be including, please let us know.
Normal service will be resumed later this week with a fascinating article on a local new website aiming to do things very differently.
Thanks for reading,
Behind Local News
UK Riots: Stories from local newsrooms and about local newsrooms
Riots remind us why local journalism needs to be protected — Owen Meredith
Local journalists are now on the frontline of the fight to protect society from AI-powered disinformation which much of the public feel ill-prepared to spot when it appears on their social media feeds.
Newspaper clears front page to condemn hate speech as disinformation swirls through area
The Stirling Observer’s front page followed claims a stabbing in its area was carried out by someone who it wasn’t — a suspected attempt to whip racial hatred, the paper said.
How The National found out where Tommy Robinson was hiding out
The Scottish daily’s journalists have revealed the online sleuthing which led to them revealing that the far-right leader was projecting his views a long way away from the towns and cities hit by violence.
“Shame on those who perpetuate the myths” — Maria Breslin, Liverpool Echo
The editor of the Liverpool Echo has spoken of the pride she feels for her team’s determination to serve the local community after a week which began with unspeakable tragedy in Southport ended with mob violence on the streets of Liverpool.
“We haven’t learnt much in half a century” — Andrew Mosley, editor, Rotherham Advertiser
The editor of the weekly paper covering the town which witnessed some of the worst violence — the storming of a hotel housing asylum seekers — fears that, once again, the wrong lessons will be learnt.
“I can still see the confused stare of a young boy who has no idea why these people hate him so much” — Dan Hayes, Sheffield Tribune
Dan Hayes, editor of the Sheffield Tribune newsletter, witnessed the violence in Rotherham, describing the violence he saw and the clear impact it was having on those inside the hotel being targeted.
“Social media can be a force for good — it’s all about how people use it” — Andrew Brown, editor, Stand Up For Southport
While platforms like TikTok and Facebook have been criticised for letting disinformation flow, helping fuel riots in the process, Andrew Brown argues it has been a force for good in the days following the killing of three girls in Southport.
“For a moment, the whole city was falling victim to violence” — Hannah Esnouf, Jersey Evening Post
Hannah, a graduate of Liverpool’s John Moores University, was in the city as violence unfolded.
“Using the horrific killings of three innocent little girls as an excuse for hate and violence is a disgrace, and is taking away from what really matters here, remembering Elsie, Alice and Bebe” — Emma Dukes, Liverpool World
Emma described her horror at protests in the city she called home — after witnessing people bringing their children to a far-right protest.
“Witnessing a small group of people tearing its community to shreds makes your heart sink” — Graeme Hetherington, Northern Echo
Graeme has covered the area for over 20 years, and revealed to readers he had never seen anything like what greeted him when violence erupted in Hartlepool.
“Communities like mine will have to pick up the pieces and that’s what we’ll do here” — Jamie Lopez, Lancashire Lead
Jamie is a resident of Southport, and wrote movingly for readers of theThe Lancashire Lead newsletter about what it was like to be in Southport.
“I don’t want to speak at all because my accent will give me away” — Karen Johnson, Bristol 247
A reporter has described feeling nervous about using her native language in her adopted UK home as a result of the far-right riots which have struck fear into communities around the country.
“They put their bodies on the line, they put themselves in the face of people intent on violence, and stood firm” — Tristan Cork, BristolLive
Tristan Cork witnessed a community form a chain around a hotel housing asylum seekers, stopping those intent on violence from getting are closer to their targets.
“Without even setting a foot in the city, the Far Right are causing fear and havoc”- Jane Haynes, BirminghamLive
Writing in her Substack newsletter Inside Birmingham with Jane Haynes, BirminghamLive’s people and politics editor revealed the impact the far right was having even without becoming violent in Birmingham.
“What I witnessed on Friday night has left me utterly ashamed and embarrassed to be from the city” — David Huntley, ChronicleLive
David Huntley, court reporter at ChronicleLive, has spent much of this week watching those involved in violent protests in the North East appear in court. But on Friday, he witnessed the riots themselves in his home city of Sunderland.
“Many will no doubt now be feeling a sense of relief, hope and optimism” — Naomi Corrigan, TeessideLive
Naomi toured parts of Teesside on Wednesday night amid fears of fresh violence, but instead found a different, and much better, picture emerging
“I felt a real sense of hope after seeing the efforts people had gone to to fix the damage of the night before” — Tom Burgess, Northern Echo
There’s a well-used phrase in local newsrooms around the UK that we’re still here long after the national news pack has moved on. A strong example of that was in Sunderland on Saturday, when Northern Echo reporter Tom Burgess joined communities clearing up after the riots which had gone on the night before.
10 days we’ll never forget: Front pages from around the UK
The front pages of the Liverpool Echo newspaper chronicle 11 days which began with horror and shock, but which risked being overtaken by hate-fuelled anger.
News of what would become the fatal killing of three little girls at a Taylor Swift-themed party in Southport on Monday, July 29 was covered extensively by the Echo online in realtime. The first print edition, on the Tuesday, focused on a town in mourning.
By Wednesday we saw the faces of the three little girls killed, while on Thursday, after violence had erupted on the streets of Southport, the Echo reported on the community’s determination not to be divided by hare. A 17-year-old had also been charged at this point.
The next day, court sketches of the teen charged, Axel Rudakubana, appeared on the front page, with some good news that two children attacked had been released from hospital.
Saturday, August 3 began with a message of solidarity. Buildings around Merseyside had been floodlit in pink in memory of the girls who died. But by the end of the day, it was violence in the city which was dominating the headlines. First, the Echo was reporting from The Strand on the city’s waterfront where protesters attacked police, before spending the night in the County Road district where looters and rioters attacked shops and burnt down a library.
On Monday, August 5, the Echo focused on stories of hope emerging from a weekend of violence, including that of a man who helped rescue a stricken police officer as a mob approached.
A week on from the first front page, on Tuesday August 6, the Echo split its splash between covering a peaceful vigil in memory of the girls in Southport, and covering the first court cases of the rioters. Swift justice is being dispatched in Liverpool, as it is around the country.
On Wednesday, the Echo splashed with the disturbing news a convicted neo Nazi was in Southport the previous week when trouble erupted. He was ‘documenting’ events.
Thursday brought perhaps the news that many had hoped for — far-right protests predicted on Wednesday had failed to materialise, and instead a massive show of hope over hate had emerged on the streets of Liverpool. “THIS IS OUR LIVERPOOL” the Echo announced in a front page widely praised on social media.
Court coverage returned to the front page on Friday as looters from the library riot the previous Saturday appeared in court.
In Southport, the weekly Visiter newspaper has focused on the impact on its local communities of events over the past two weeks, first beginning with 18 pages of coverage last week, before following up with coverage this week centred around how people in the seaside town were rallying around to support each other.
Violence spread around the country last weekend, with the North East of England being one of the first to witness mindless thuggery fuelled by the far right.
The Sunderland Echo splashed on weekend violence on Monday, leading with a response from city and community leaders that rioters would not win. On Tuesday, it revealed thousands of pounds had been donated by people seeking to help those who had suffered in the angry riots, before reporting on Wednesday how NHS workers had been attacked by those rioting even though they were trying to help the thugs.
Thursday’s Echo spoke to people who now no longer feel safe in the city, while on Friday it focused on the positive responses to the violence.
For the Northern Echo, front pages have covered violence in multiple towns, including Middlesbrough, Darlington and Hartlepool. By this weekend, the Echo as encouraging people to get back to normal, urging them to remember that town centres were open for business.
Last week, as violence flared in Hartlepool, the Echo splashed with “This is not who we are” — a front page themes it returned to several days later after hundreds turned out on the streets to clean up after the riots. “This is who we are” it declared.
Front pages of the Teesside Gazette have also been dominated by violent events, with the Gazette strongly condemning the violent actions seen in its towns.
Belfast, a city which knows all too well how damaging rioting can be for communities, also saw violence erupt, with paramilitary organisations being blamed.
The Belfast Telegraph’s front pages revealed overseas nurses were now quitting Northern Ireland because they no longer feel safe, while a Filipino care worker told the Telegraph they didn’t know where they were safe in the city any more.
Saturday’s front page did find a more upbeat line — a couple who pushed ahead with their wedding despite protests taking place all around them
In Manchester, city centre protests made the front page of the Manchester Evening News’ Sunday edition, swiftly followed by splashes reporting promises from the police that justice would be done. On Thursday the MEN reported on how counter protesters took to the streets declaring ‘we all breathe the same air’ while on Friday, the MEN urged readers to help find 22 men and boys police want to speak to about the violence.
In Bristol, Post journalists witnessed violence in the city over the weekend, and focused several front pages during the week to the fall out, culminating in Friday’s splash reporting on how thousands turned out to counter protest a threatened far-right gathering — only for the far-right to fail to materialise.
In the South West, the Morning News led with coverage of protests around the region on several days, with the most striking splash on Wednesday as it focused on violence flaring in Plymouth.
The Plymouth Herald’s front pages were dominated by clashes which swept through the city centre on Monday. On Wednesday, the Herald asked “How dare they take over our streets” before on Friday revealing the first cases of people being sentenced for their part in violence.
The pattern of the week in many towns and cities was neatly summed up in four front pages from the News in Portsmouth. Coverage of protests dominated Monday’s front page before warnings were reported that no violence would be tolerated at future gatherings. The peaceful protests which emerged on Wednesday night were reported on Friday — while today (Saturday) the focus is now on finding those who caused havoc in the first place.
It was the same in Blackpool, where street clashes at the weekend were reported on Monday, followed by a warning from police that troublemakers would be caught — followed by a front page appealing for help in finding some of those who had been caught on camera.
In Birmingham, the Birmingham Mail’s front page on Tuesday captured details of a late-night protest at a hotel in Tamworth, while also reporting on locals in part of Birmingham turning out in force to protect communities from a rumoured far-right protest.
The Mail also cleared its front page on Thursday to the ‘two-tier policing’ story — a claim made by Elon Musk that it appeared the police responded differently to protests depending on who was involved. West Midlands Police dismissed this claim, as a powerful Mail splash showed.
And finally, to Tamworth, where the weekly Herald was well placed to offer considered reflection on Sunday night protests outside a Holiday Inn housing asylum seekers.
It noted the protest mobs hit the town on Sunday with petrol bombs and firworks, before the town came together to clear up the mess.
Thanks for reading Behind Local News,
