Type Daily newspaper Owner(s) Local World News editor Scott Harrison | Format Tabloid Editor Bill Martin Founded 3 January 1860 | |
The Western Morning News is a daily regional newspaper founded in 1860, and covering the Westcountry including Devon, Cornwall, Isles of Scilly and parts of Somerset and Dorset in the South West of England.
Contents
Organisation
The Western Morning News is published by South West Media Group (formerly known as Westcountry Publications), a division of Local World. Its main office is based in Plymouth and it has journalists based in newsdesks in Exeter, Truro, Penzance and Plymouth. It also has a London editor based in Westminster. Bill Martin is editor of the Western Morning News, while Philip Bowern is head of content, with two senior news editors Andy Greenwood and David Wells.
History
The Western Morning News was founded by William Saunders and Edward Spender, father of Sir Wilfrid Spender, on 3 January 1860. It has been published continuously since the first edition, including throughout the 1926 General Strike and the Plymouth Blitz. By 1920, the Devon newspaper market was getting cramped, with all papers running into financial difficulties. In the same year, Sir Leicester Harmsworth acquired the Western Morning News; from 1 February 1921, the Western Daily Mercury and Western Evening Herald were also taken over, with the papers continuing to be published from the old Mercury offices in Frankfort Street. Shortly before World War II, new offices were constructed on the same site after the demolition of the previous premises; the modern construction allowed the offices to survive the Blitz and publishing continued there until the move to Derriford.
On 8 February 1997, the Western Morning News followed most local newspapers in the UK and changed format from broadsheet to tabloid. In 2012, Local World acquired the ownership of Northcliffe Media from Daily Mail and General Trust, The paper had a short-lived Sunday edition from June 2014 until January 2016.
Readership and website
The Western Morning News is published six days a week and aims to provide readers with regional, national and international news with a consistent editorial standpoint. The paper prides itself on the supplements it provides, which cover a range of topics, including:
It also operates a 24-hour news service through its website.