Conservative party election ads that were published on the front pages of local newspapers last week have been heavily criticised by the National Union of Journalists and sparked a backlash among readers.
The adverts published in advance of the local elections were “clearly designed” to convey the impression that they were regular news stories, the NUJ said.
A petition calling for one of the newspapers that ran the adverts – the Westmorland Gazette in Cumbria – to publish a full-page apology has collected almost 1,000 signatures.
The controversy has emerged as journalists criticised Theresa May for accepting only pre-agreed questions from selected reporters at a campaign event. Meanwhile, BuzzFeed said it had been denied access to Labour events after publishing an interview in which Jeremy Corbyn said he could remain leader of the party even if it loses the election.
The NUJ said journalists at local newspapers were “gravely concerned at the blurring of lines between editorial content and advertising”.
Séamus Dooley, the acting general secretary of the NUJ, said: “Party political advertising is a legitimate feature of campaigning and there is no doubt that media organisations welcome the additional revenue. But disguising advertising as news and effectively hijacking a newspaper masthead for any political party or candidate is an entirely different matter and is a cause of concern.
“The masthead should be a symbol of editorial independence and it is clear many readers, of all political persuasions and none, are opposed to this trend.”
Some of the newspapers have defended the move. In an editorial published on Tuesday, the Westmorland Gazette, which is owned by Newsquest, said it was “no more endorsing the Conservative party than any other brand or product that has paid to advertise in any of our news brands for the past 200 years”.
It explained: “Last week the Conservative party paid to advertise their message in a ‘wraparound’ advertisement across a number of North West Newsquest titles, including the Westmorland Gazette. Unfortunately, this has upset a number of our readers on the basis of that we have shown alleged political bias.
“This was clearly labelled as an advertisement. The Westmorland Gazette supports no political party. There is, and always has been, a very clear distinction between editorial and advertising content. Political editorial and election coverage will continue to be reported in a completely non-partisan way.”
The Westmorland Gazette is based in the constituency of Tim Farron, the leader of Liberal Democrats. His party declined to criticise the newspaper. A spokesman said: “Tim has excellent relations with the Westmorland Gazette. Regular readers will know that its editorial pages are full of stories about the great work Tim does in his constituency and how the Liberal Democrats are providing the real opposition this country needs.”
