Local Democracy Reporting Service: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 21:48, 30 November 2023

Revision as of 02:29, 1 May 2024

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{{Use British English|date=June 2022}}

The '''Local Democracy Reporting Service''' ('''LDRS''') is an initiative in the United Kingdom funded by the [[BBC]]. The scheme pays for the employment of journalists by local independent news outlets, in order to improve the coverage of issues relating to [[Local government in the United Kingdom|local democracy]].<ref name="LDRS">{{cite web |title=Local Democracy Reporting Service |url=https://www.bbc.com/lnp/ldrs |publisher=[[BBC]] |access-date=25 June 2022 }}</ref><ref name="Lock">{{cite web |title=Local Democracy Reporting Service: A model for public broadcasters? |first1=Harry |last1=Lock |url=https://www.publicmediaalliance.org/local-democracy-reporting-service-a-model-for-public-broadcasters/ |publisher=Public Media Alliance |access-date=25 June 2022 |date=2 November 2021}}</ref><ref name="RadioExe">{{cite web |title=Local Democracy Reporting Service |url=https://www.radioexe.co.uk/news-and-features/ldrs-in-devon/ |website=Radio Exe |publisher=Radio Exe |access-date=25 June 2022 }}</ref><ref name="TMJ">{{cite web |title=Local democracy reporters aid transparency |url=https://themj.co.uk/Local-democracy-reporters-aid-transparency-/212212 |website=[[The Municipal Journal]] }}</ref> Its core purpose is stated as being "to provide impartial coverage of the regular business and workings of local authorities in the UK, and other relevant democratic institutions such as mayoralties, [[Combined authority|combined authority areas]], [[Police and crime commissioner|P&CCs]], [[quango]]s, etc."<ref name="LDRS" />

The scheme launched in 2017.<ref name="Lock" /> As of the 2021 contracting round, 165 '''Local Democracy Reporters''' ('''LDRs''') were employed by eighteen participating organisations, ranging from large bodies including [[DC Thomson]], [[Reach plc|Reach&nbsp;plc]], [[Newsquest]] and the ''[[Evening Standard]]'', to smaller outlets such as [[107.3 Radio Exe|Radio Exe]] and Social Spider, a [[community interest company]] which publishes three north London community newspapers.<ref name="LDRS" /><ref name="Lock" /><ref name="LDRA-2021">{{cite web |title=New Local Democracy Reporting Service contract holders revealed |url=https://www.bbc.com/lnp/ldrs/2021_contracts/ |publisher=BBC |access-date=25 June 2022 }}</ref><ref name="x853">{{cite web |title=853 and the Local Democracy Reporting Service |url=https://853.london/about/853-and-the-local-democracy-reporter-scheme/ |website=853 |access-date=25 June 2022}}</ref>