IN the run up to this year’s Local Newspaper Week (May 15 - 21), local press publishers are coming together to launch the first ever print and digital campaign against fake news and highlight the very high levels of trust that readers place in local newspapers.

At the Crediton Courier, we focus on local stories where possible and most are generated by local people. Our ethos is your news, your views, your faces, your places and we strive to produce genuine news stories, and do our utmost to check and research any facts contained in our stories, adding validity to everything you read.

Fighting Fake News which was launched on Wednesday, May 3 will see local newspapers across the UK carry editorial and graphics highlighting the industry’s highly trusted credentials and the importance of local newspapers in reporting on the upcoming general election.

Papers will highlight the checks and balances involved in reporting local news and the investment required to produce local journalism as opposed to distributing fake news to profit from opaque programmatic advertising.

The campaign will also highlight the highly-trusted environment which local papers provide for advertisers and commercial partners, following an open letter to advertisers from publishers in the 1XL network earlier this month.

Co-ordinated through Local Media Works, the local marketing arm of the News Media Association, Fighting Fake News will run up to and complement Local Newspaper Week which highlights local newspapers’ ability to make a difference for their communities through campaigning.