Local Politicians Defend the Use of Fake Newspapers

Published on: 11 Sep, 2023
Updated on: 15 Sep, 2023

Examples of fake newspapers distributed in Guildford

By Martin Giles

The use of fake newspapers by political parties for campaign purposes has been defended by local representatives of all three major national parties in Guildford.

Their defence came ahead of a letter from press regulator Impress to Greg Hands, Conservative party chair, as well as other political parties in the UK.

In her letter, Impress CEO Lexie Kirkconnell-Kawana, highlighting the trust crisis that journalism currently faces, says: “For democracy to flourish it is essential that we have a thriving, healthy and trusted news media ecosystem…

“It is entirely disheartening to see the [politicians] continuing to engage in the practice of distributing campaigning materials under the guise of local newspapers, misleading voters…”.

Fake News Impress letter to Conservative party chair

The subject has also featured in Private Eye, which reports that even titles trademarked by a local publisher in the Midlands were used by the Conservative party.

Private Eye article September 8

South Swindon MP Sir Robert Buckland has claimed local press mimicry is “a positive thing” after delivering a title called the South Swindon Messenger around his constituency. Elsewhere other titles of real former local newspapers – the Lincoln Chronicle and the High Peak Reporter – have been used.

The Electoral Commission has said it is “powerless” to act on the practice, while the UK government told Hold the Front Page that local newspapers “should not be regulated” after refusing to act to stop it.

Readers of the Byline Times have responded with anger. One wrote: “Many people will be fooled by this, especially older people, who I would imagine tend to read the local papers more, are also less likely to notice the microscopic small print in hard-to-find places.”

A poll (sample 1,300 GB adults), conducted by independent pollsters Omnisis, has found that 62 per cent of people think that the fake newspaper tactic should be banned if they do not make clear which party is behind it.

The Conservative’s “Guildford Chronicle“. The small print at the bottom says: “Promoted by Adam Heilbron on behalf of Angela Richardson…” Click on image to enlarge.

Defending the practice, Guildford’s MP Angela Richardson said: “Like all other political parties, we use a range of methods to promote our campaigns. This includes using a newspaper format to inform voters both about what I am doing locally and what the government is doing nationally.

Angela Richardson MP

“Whilst the Liberal Democrats use this platform for political attacks and point scoring, our newspapers highlight my positive record in Guildford since being elected in 2019. For example, my latest Guildford Chronicle newspaper is currently being delivered to residents to update them on educational opportunities in and around our town.

“Every piece of campaign literature that we distribute adheres to the legal requirement of an imprint with the candidate and publisher information listed. However, the Electoral Commission has previously stated that literature designs are a matter for political parties and I trust Guildford residents to come to their own conclusions when reading these publications.”

The small print on the Guildford & Villages Gazette says “Paid for by the Liberal Democrats…” Click on image to enlarge.

Zoe Franklin, whose Liberal Democrat party is believed to have used fake newspapers more than other parties in Guildford, said: “As a political party we produce a variety of different styles of leaflets to share our message on local and national issues, one of which is a newspaper-style format.

Zoe Franklin

She then criticised the Conservatives, whose newspaper she said was less identifiable as political campaigning material. She said: “This approach is also taken by other political parties locally, including a newspaper-style leaflet by the Conservatives which was distributed last month.

“Local residents will see on our newspaper leaflet that it clearly states below the title ‘Paid for and distributed for free by the Liberal Democrats’ – we are not hiding that this is a political leaflet and find that our different approaches connect with different residents.

“In the Liberal Democrat office, we have struggled to find any mention of the word “Conservative” on the tabloid literature issued by the local Conservative MP. We assume it is because they are as ashamed of their party as the rest of the country is.”

Cllr James Walsh

Guildford Labour is understood not to have used fake newspapers for “at least ten years” according to one member, but Labour leader at GBC James Walsh said: “We’ve used a similar format in the past, not so much in Guildford Labour Party, but certainly when I was a councillor in Slough, and, to me, it’s just another way of presenting a party political leaflet – if a little old-hat now.

“One glance at the Lib Dems’ ‘Gazette’, for example, will tell you that you’re very unlikely to get a rounded viewpoint with all perspectives covered from the articles within.

“While the ‘fake newspaper’ may irritate some, there are probably more important things to get het up about – like very dodgy bar graphs at election time, for example….

“Besides, people are continuing to spend good money for the Daily Mail every day – and that particular publication wears the term ‘newspaper’ very loosely indeed. You certainly won’t find any rounded viewpoints and neutral reportage anywhere near it.”

Dragon editor Martin Giles

Dragon editor Martin Giles said: “Fortunately this does not affect us as an online newspaper directly but it is simply dishonest. Our regulator Impress is right to criticise these newspapers which are pretending to be something they are not.

“Honest parties and honest politicians, who wish to abide by the Nolan principles of honesty, openness and integrity, should have nothing to do with them.

“Rather than spend time and money producing misleading propaganda, all parties should concentrate effort on supporting local journalism which is on its knees. The current government has done nothing to offer effective support despite the findings of the Cairncross review in 2019.

“The truth is some of them do not like the scrutiny local journalism gives local politics.”

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