The National Assembly for Wales is today (October 23) hosting a ‘Hyperlocal News Day’ for community journalists from across Wales.
The event, being organised in partnership with Cardiff University’s Centre for Community Journalism, forms part of the Presiding Officer, Dame Rosemary Butler AM’s “Addressing the Democratic Deficit in Wales” #DemDef campaign.
The campaign is looking at ways of increasing media coverage of the Assembly’s business.
Dame Rosemary said: “One of my core roles as Presiding Officer is to ensure that the people of Wales are fully engaged with the work that we do here at the National Assembly for Wales.
“That is made more difficult by the UK media, and large sections of the Welsh media, which aren’t properly reporting our work to their (often large) Welsh audiences.
“However, we have spoken to many hyperlocal and community journalists across Wales and they are keen to cover our work.
“Hyperlocal News Day is about inviting those community journalists into the Senedd to look at how we work, and how they can use our content and platforms to report the work of the Assembly.
“It is very encouraging to see such enthusiasm from these new media channels in Wales. That’s why I want to work directly with them to see how we can improve access to our work.
“Hyperlocal News Day is the start of that process.”
The event aims to bring hyperlocal and community journalists into the Senedd to enable them to report the work of the National Assembly that is relevant to their locality and audiences.
Professor Richard Sambrook, Director of the Centre for Journalism and former Director of Global News at the BBC, will act as news editor on the day, offering advice and guidance to the hyperlocal and community journalists.
Professor Sambrook said: “What goes on at the National Assembly for Wales affects the lives of everyone living and working in this country. It is important for a healthy democracy that people know what is going on and are able to hold elected members to account.
“With its strong tradition of community and hyperlocal journalism and with lots of innovation and development in this field, Wales has great potential for creating more and better local coverage, bringing people closer to the Assembly and its members.
“The Centre for Community Journalism is dedicated to researching, supporting and linking up this important area of journalism and is delighted to be working with the National Assembly to do so.”
Prof Justin Lewis, Professor of Communications, said: “Our research shows that the UK media, which is dominant in Wales, often gets it wrong when it comes to covering the most important areas of public life such as health and education, attributing England-only policies to the whole of the UK.
“Even when they do make a distinction, coverage of Wales is scant. Local, community and hyperlocal journalism has an important role to play in closing this gap and the Presiding Officer is to be congratulated for making the Assembly accessible and open to them so that people in all parts of Wales know about policies and debates which affect them so directly.”
Caerphilly Observer reporter Gareth Hill is taking part in the event.