Great Central Gazette, Leicester’s NEW newspaper

The Great Central Gazette is a not-for-profit newspaper launching in 2023, written by and for local people in Leicester. 

Our ambition is to hold power to account, work with the community to fix big issues, and partner with local groups to present journalism workshops for anyone hoping to learn new skills. 

It’ll be run as a co-operative, a type of model where members get to vote on how the business is run. 

Our mission

• Stay independent. The Gazette will be ad-free and funded by its members.
• Slow, quality news. Reporters will work with sensitivity, calm and care and won’t rush their work.
• Inclusion. Everyone gets a say in how we run.

We will cover unreported local news, showcase the history of Leicester, unpack stats and data, hold debates and open discussions, publish comment from local people, publish investigative features with solutions at their core, profile interesting people doing good in the community, and give a platform to the arts, literature, independent film and more.

Why the Gazette?

Ideally, journalism would represent everyone. We should be able to tell our stories with our own voices and come together as a community to amplify disadvantaged, marginalised and under-represented people. We need newspapers created with and for the people who feel like they’re being let down by existing media.

In reality, current local newspapers in the city don’t go far enough to spark positive change. This is, in part, because they’re owned by a handful of wealthy individuals and organisations. Some of the reporting they do is good, but these newspapers used to care about the community. They informed, safeguarded, and grew every facet of local life. They’ve now transformed into money-making schemes. The newsroom’s dominating voice has become advertising income. A newspaper’s revenue is proportional to the number of website clicks it receives. Journalists write dozens of pieces a day to get our attention, and they use clickbait and strikingly non-local subject matters to do so. That isn’t sustainable.

The consequences of this is that the quality of journalism isn’t as it should be, with recycled press releases and paid for advertorials becoming the norm. The current model fails to represent people without a voice, prevents newspapers from investigating stories in detail, and generally doesn’t offer any solutions to the problems facing the city.

Our work

Some examples of our work include: 

• Leading the Leicester Pride parade this year.
• Planned workshops on podcasting, human rights and using freedom of information.
• Lobbying efforts in collaboration with other organisations like Co-operatives UK, around legislation affecting social enterprises.
• Talking on BBC Radio Leicester about the issues surrounding local journalism.
• Conversations with dozens of charities, local groups, business leaders, journalists and local people.

We would like to:

• Organise large events like a ‘Leicester Media Awards’ for artists, filmmakers, podcasters, writers, and more to showcase their work.
• Publish high-quality editorially independent journalism.
• Encourage members to become actively involved in working groups that exist, or start new ones bringing members together to socialise, form relationships and share problems.
• Organise other workshops for both members and non-members that are well attended and useful.
• Build a local network of hyperlocal newspapers.
• Pay all our freelance writers and contributors a fair rate.
• Build a website that’s disability friendly and without ads.
• Get the word out with a small amount spent on marketing.
• Secure legal support, so we can investigate those in power without having to worry about them abusing the legal system.

As firm believers in transparency, we will run an open and free register of where all the money comes from and what it’s being spent on. This will launch alongside our website.

All funds are managed and held directly by the team until The Gazette has been registered with the Financial Conduct Authority.

FAQs

What payment options are there for pledging?

Supporters can pledge on a project using all major credit/debit cards. Simple.

What happens if the project isn't successful?

Every donation matters. If we don’t quite reach the goal, we’ll make some adjustments and power forward with what we’ve got.

Can I pledge anonymously?

Yes! Simply tick ‘Pledge anonymously’ when making your pledge.

Will you cover my community?

Gazette reporters will be on the ground in the ‘Leicester Built-Up Area’, as defined by the Office of National Statistics. This covers Leicester city and its inner and outer suburbs (E.g Syston, Oadby, Braunstone Town). But if you’re outside of this area, and still want to support the Gazette, you’re more than welcome to donate!

How can I get involved?

We need everyone to share this crowdfunder – please tweet, post on Facebook and tell your friends and family about us. Every penny counts.

When do you launch?

The website and membership will launch in 2023, with a print newspaper following in 2024.

Who is behind the Gazette?

Leading the Gazette is a small team of journalists and local people—including Reece and Emma, pictured below at Leicester Pride 2022.