The tide is turning

Dear readers — we have some really exciting news for you this afternoon. 

Every profession has its gongs, and among us journalists one of the most important is the British Journalism Awards, run by Press Gazette. 

On Thursday, they announced the shortlist for the awards in December. Only eight journalists across the country were shortlisted for the local journalism category. And one of those journalists is right here, in Liverpool, working for our tiny team at The Post.

Our editor and chief investigator Abi Whistance has been shortlisted for her investigation earlier this year which revealed shocking allegations of domestic and sexual abuse by historian Laurence Westgaph. She spent months speaking to women who claim they were emotionally coerced, physically and sexually violated by the former BBC presenter, who previously held the prestigious position of historian in residence at National Museums Liverpool. Her reporting also revealed that victims had attempted to alert the museums about his abuse multiple times — only to be ignored. 

She’s not alone in her nomination either. For those not in the know, The Post is part of a wider media company called Mill Media, responsible for six titles across the UK. Another two journalists from Mill Media have also been nominated for the local journalism prize at the British Journalism Awards.

Mollie Simpson — a reporter for our Manchester title, The Mill — has been nominated for her incredible work probing murky goings on at the University of Greater Manchester, which included uncovering evidence of deals that were providing “kickbacks” to senior university staff. By the time she’d finished with them, the vice chancellor had been suspended, and Greater Manchester Police were raiding properties as part of a major investigation into serious fraud and bribery charges.

And Daniel Timms, writer for The Sheffield Tribune, has also been put forward for the prize after his explosive investigation into the University of Sheffield, revealing them to be a key partner in developing the UK’s next nuclear warheads. 

Three out of eight total nominees — that’s really, really not bad. In fact, it’s beginning to look like something is shifting — a tide turning, perhaps. When we started trying to do journalism differently five years ago we weren’t paid much attention. But this week’s news proves we’re making a real difference — and producing some of the best journalism in the UK, right here in the north of England.

It’s not actually a coincidence that journalists within our network have done so well. While some of it is down to their individual skill, in truth, it’s a team effort. And the team includes every single person who supports The Post as a paying member — this is your success too.

Because the big reason Abi, Daniel, or Mollie can write award-nominated stuff is simple: they are given the time to do so.

We can give them that time because we’re backed by members, who understand that good things take time. They’re not hankering after enraging headlines every hour with sparse reporting beneath them. They want quality, and they’re willing to invest, and wait for it to come off. They trust us — and as we believe the nominations show, they’re right to do so.

Thanks,

The Post team