Community media organisations from across Scotland have highlighted the need for stronger support for independent local journalism following a major community sector event at the Scottish Parliament.
Members of The Scottish Beacon – Scotland’s award-winning collaborative network of independent community news organisations – took part in Local People Leading, an event organised by the Scottish Community Alliance which saw community organisations gather at Holyrood to discuss the future of Community Wealth Building.
The event explored what Scotland’s new Community Wealth Building legislation will mean in practice. The law places a legal duty on councils, health boards and other public bodies to ensure wealth circulates within local economies rather than flowing to distant investors.
For many community media organisations, this principle is already central to their work: providing journalism rooted in place, strengthening civic participation and helping communities tell their own stories.
Community Wealth Building in action
During the event, a film produced by Greater Community Media was screened in the Scottish Parliament chamber, highlighting examples of Community Wealth Building already happening across Scotland.
The film featured initiatives including Glenfarg Community Transport, Tiree Community Development Trust, Tarras Valley Nature Reserve, The Nevis Centre, Mayfield and Easthouses Development Trust and Greater Govanhill.
It also demonstrated the role community media can play in enabling communities to share their own narratives and access trusted local information.
Community media and community cohesion
Representatives from The Scottish Beacon network also led a workshop exploring how community media contributes to stronger and more connected communities. The workshop was led by Rhiannon J Davies and Samar Jamal who spoke about the Scottish Beacon and Greater Govanhill respectively.
The session brought together independent publishers from across Scotland to discuss how local journalism can help communities stay informed, participate in local decision-making and maintain a shared sense of place.
Contributors included representatives from Beacon member publications such as The Clydesider, Midlothian View, Orkney News, Currie & Balerno News, Crail Matters and Fios Community News.
Despite the strong trust placed in community media, participants also highlighted the ongoing challenges faced by many independent outlets working with limited resources.
Question put to MSPs
The event concluded with a cross-party panel of MSPs – Lorna Slater (Scottish Greens), Mercedes Villalba (Scottish Labour), Jamie Halcro Johnston (Scottish Conservatives) and Christine Grahame (Scottish National Party).
During the discussion, Amanda Eleftheriades-Sherry of Clydeside Creative raised the issue of public sector advertising and asked why a share of Scottish Government and local authority advertising budgets could not be directed towards independent community media rather than primarily going to large corporate publishers.
Many community publications, she noted, reach engaged local audiences but struggle to access public sector advertising revenue.
Responding to the question, Lorna Slater said there was no obvious reason why public bodies should not make greater use of community media.
“Local media is absolutely the most trusted,” she said.
“I don’t think there’s any reason why public bodies shouldn’t use it – it’s probably just that they’ve always used the same contracts and the same outlets.”
She encouraged community publishers to raise the issue directly with their MSPs and suggested it could form the basis of a wider campaign.
A call for stronger support for community media
Across Scotland, community-owned news organisations are increasingly recognised as an important part of the local information ecosystem, providing trusted reporting rooted in the communities they serve.
However, many outlets continue to operate with limited resources while reaching large and engaged audiences.
Members of The Scottish Beacon network say a number of policy changes could help strengthen the sector, including:
- Dedicating a portion of Scottish Government and local authority advertising budgets to community media – similar to this policy from New York City where 50% of ad spend goes to community media – helping ensure public spending supports trusted local journalism and local economies.
- Creating a public fund to support independent local media, like the £210k fund introduced in Wales to strengthen the local news landscape.
- Establishing funded journalism placements – particularly for people from underrepresented backgrounds – that are accessible to independent publishers, helping diversify the sector while supporting smaller outlets, along the lines of the Local Journalism Initiative and Changing Narratives fund in Canada.
Supporters say these measures would help strengthen local democracy, improve access to trusted local information and ensure community journalism can continue serving communities across Scotland.
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